Of Wizards and Soldiers
by Staryday
Summary: Cloud and Harry join the ranks of Shinra to rescue their friend. While there they attempt to reveal the corruption of the science department and Hojo but instead get caught in over their heads in a war they didn't even know was being fought. Can they save their friend and themselves before it's too late? Cloud/Zack Harry/Reno
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is a new crossover I'm trying. I've got a rough idea for plot and stuff but the updates won't be every week, like AFWTD. A few people who have read my other works said they'd like to see this crossover so I figured I'd give it a shot.**

**Main Characters: Cloud, Harry, Reno, and Zack**

**Pairings: I'm pretty much set on Zack/Cloud but no others have been decided as of now**

**Expected Length: Medium to Long**

**Pace: This is going to be a fast paced story. I find I'm more likely to finish things if I don't drag them out.**

**Chapter One**

Three friends ran through the dark streets together, their feet pounding on the ground, kicking up dirt. The tallest of the three, a boy with messy spiked blonde hair, stopped abruptly, making his friends crash into him. He grabbed them both and shoved them behind a couple of barrels sitting in front of the inn.

"Stay here!" he ordered before running off.

The other, a boy with messy black hair and beautiful green eyes, shoved his friend behind him. The girl, a bushy haired blonde, grumbled in complaint. A moment later a group of five teens ran past. They were cursing angrily.

"This way!" the leader of the gang yelled. They ran off in the direction of the first boy.

"We have to help Cloud!" the girl exclaimed. "They're heading right for him, Harry!"

"I'll go, you get back to the house, Hermione," Harry ordered. "Make sure Mama Strife gets the food."

Harry ran off without a word, trusting Hermione to do as she was told. Harry ran around behind the Items store and quickly stopped, hiding behind the corner. Cloud was surrounded by the gang of kids, looking ready to fight. The bullies cracked their knuckles, chuckling darkly.

"Thought you could steal from us, did you? You and those other two are nothing but worthless freeloaders!"

"We didn't steal anything from you!" Cloud shouted. "That wolf was killed by a dragon and we cleaned and skinned it!"

"We found it first," the leader of the gang, Terry, growled. He was tall, beefy teenager with small eyes. He was one of the strongest teens in town and often used his strength to bully or intimate others.

"Well I didn't see your name on it," Cloud snapped.

Terry snapped his fingers and two of the guys grabbed Cloud's arms, easily pinning the much younger boy. Harry looked around for inspiration and smiled as he spotted a pile of firewood tied to the roof of the building. If he could aim his magic just right, he could break the rope holding the wood up and make it fall on the gang's head. While he carefully aimed his wand, the boys began to attack Cloud, punching him in the stomach. Harry forced himself to ignore it and released a spell. The light shot straight above everyone's head and hit the rope dead on.

The wood fell and landed on two of the bullies. The others let go of Cloud, who turned and kicked them hard in the shin before running away. The teens shouted after him as they ran but didn't continue the chase. Cloud and Harry didn't stop running until they made it to home. They stood at the gate, gasping for breath.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked in between breaths. Cloud nodded and stood straight.

"Nothing I can't handle," he assured, touching his stomach gently.

The door opened and light spilled onto the street. Claudia Strife stood in the doorway, looking down at the boys in disapproval. Hermione was hiding behind her, biting her lip in worry.

"Boys!" Mrs. Strife snapped. "Inside, now!"

They hurried to do as told and Mrs. Strife shut the door after looking to make sure no one was on the street. She rounded on the children, hands on her hips.

"What did you three do this time?" she demanded, her voice angry.

"We didn't do anything mom!" Cloud exclaimed. "We found a dead wolf and brought the meat home!"

Hermione nodded quickly and pointed at the meat she had carried into the house.

"Then why are you all dirty?" Mrs. Strife stepped forward, lifting up Cloud's chin. "And looking like someone beat you up?"

Cloud looked away and Harry answered. "Terry's gang said the wolf was theirs but it wasn't! We found it first!"

"How many times have I told you boys to not get into fights! You are ten years old!" The blonde woman sighed, shaking her head. "One of these days something terrible is going to happen to you."

The kids toed the ground, not answering. Mrs. Strife sighed again. "Go get cleaned up. I'll start dinner."

Without a word the three children ran off upstairs. Mrs. Strife walked over to the table and looked at the meat. It was good quality; the wolf must have been in it's prime when it was killed. The winter would be coming soon and this meat would help get them through it. She would pack it in salt and freeze it but for tonight, she would cut up a part of it and the small family would have a satisfying dinner for once.

As she cooked, Hermione joined her in the kitchen, a book clutched in her hand. She smiled down at the little girl she had adopted two years ago.

"Do you need help, Mama Strife?" Hermione asked.

Mrs. Strife pointed at some carrots. "Wash those and chop them, please."

Hermione quickly did as asked, humming happily. Mrs. Strife stared at the girl, remembering the first time they had met. She had been much smaller and much dirtier than she was now. Hermione and Harry had been lost in the Nible Mountains together. Cloud had found them on the outskirts of town one day, up by the old mansion, and managed to carry both children to the inn and call for help, saving their lives. The children had said their parents died and they had gotten lost trying to cross the mountains.

The villagers had been distrustful of the children, not liking the unnatural glow to Harry's beautiful green eyes or Hermione's vast knowledge of almost every subject. They had healed the children, of course, they weren't monsters, but didn't know what to do with them afterwards. When talk of sending the children away had come up, Mrs. Strife had decided to take them in, even though she barely had enough money to feed herself and Cloud. Really, she couldn't understand the people of Nibelheim sometimes. They took the time to heal the children and then wanted to send them away once the summer came?

Mrs. Strife shook away the memories. She had taken the two orphans in and was glad for it. Even though the three kids got into more trouble than all the other children of Nibelheim put together, she never once regretted her choice. Harry and Hermione were wonderful children and she loved them as she did her own.

Hermione walked over to her, carrying the chopped carrots. "I've finished, Mama Strife."

"Put them in the pot," she ordered. "We'll have stew tonight."

A knock on the door interrupted them and Mrs. Strife frowned. She wiped her hands off on her apron and went to answer it. Standing there was the mayor, along with a group of villagers. Mrs. Strife recognized most of the people, particularly the parents of the teenagers who were always chasing her children.

"Can I help you, Mayor Lockhart?" Mrs. Strife asked coldly.

"There seems to have been a ruckus, Mrs. Strife," the mayor began. "Mr. Sebastian claims some of his firewood was damaged and a rope of his cut."

"How unfortunate for him."

The Mayor waited for her to say more but the woman merely stared coldly. The man sighed.

"He believes your children might have had something to do with it."

"Oh?" Mrs. Strife turned angry blue eyes on the man. He was not very large, like many men in the village, but what he lacked in size he made up for in arrogance. "And why would he think that?"

"Come off it, woman!" Sebastian yelled, spitting on the ground. "Your brats are always behind things like this!"

"You have been accusing my children for your misfortune since the day they arrived. Perhaps instead of blaming innocent kids, your time would be better spent oh, I don't know, tying your wood up properly so accidents don't happen?"

"The rope was cut!"

"And none of my children own a knife or are tall enough to climb your roof!" Mrs. Strife snapped, unfolding her arms and taking a step forward.

"They're not natural!" Sebastian shouted at her, looking around him at the other villagers.

"Why? Because Harry has beautiful eyes and Hermione is more intelligent than all of you put together?" She leaned into the man's personal space, her eyes narrowed with fury. "Unless you have some sort of proof I would appreciate it if you didn't slander my kid's good names because you are a lowly bigot who is afraid of children!"

"Now Mrs. Strife, let's not resort to name-calling," the mayor interjected.

Mrs. Strife rounded on him. "You come here with a mob to my doorstep and you don't expect me to defend my family?" She glared at the crowd. "My children have done nothing wrong! Get off my property, all of you! You are not welcome here!"

Without any proof, the mob had no choice but to disperse. The Mayor shooed everyone down the uneven cobble steps but Mrs. Strife stopped them with her cold voice.

"Oh and Gene, tell your son that if ever attacks my boys again, he will have _me_ to deal with."

Gene whipped around, stalking up to the woman. "Are you threatening my boy?"

Mrs. Strife didn't back down. "Yes."

"Come along, Gene." Mayor Lockhart jumped in between the two quickly.

Gene allowed himself to be pulled away, glaring at Mrs. Strife until he was back on the road. The mob dispersed, the mayor making sure Gene made it home without taking any detours. Mrs. Strife stayed on the porch with her glare firmly in place until everyone had vanished from sight. When she was sure no one was going to come back and start trouble, she turned and slammed the door shut behind her.

The children were sitting at table. Hermione was pouring the stew into bowls while Harry and Cloud were sitting quietly, looking angry. Mrs. Strife frowned at them and stood in front of Harry.

"Give it," she ordered, holding her hand out.

"But I had to cut the ropes!" Harry whined. "They were hurting Cloud!"

She snapped her fingers and held her hand out again. Harry pouted and handed his wand over to her. Mrs. Strife turned and placed it on top of the refrigerator. She turned to Cloud.

"Lift your shirt."

"I'm fine mom."

She snapped her fingers again and Cloud stood angrily, lifting his shirt to reveal light bruising on his stomach. Mrs. Strife felt fury pool in her stomach.

"Get some ice from outside and keep it on your stomach while we eat," she ordered.

Cloud did as he was told without complaint. The small family ate dinner in silence. When they were done, each child washed their bowl and kissed Mrs. Strife goodnight before going upstairs to bed. Once they were settled, she switched off all the lights and sat in the dark on the couch.

Claudia Strife never once regretted adopting Harry and Hermione. Her only regret was that they had to live in the small, narrow-minded town. Her children deserved so much better and, one day, she would make sure they got it.

**Six Years Later**

Cloud sat on top of the roof to the Inn, watching the soldiers down below. Harry and Hermione were next to him, looking down curiously. Shinra had arrived in the town late last night, causing a small commotion in the sleepy village. No one knew why they had suddenly shown up unannounced and were scrambling to make them feel welcome.

"Those are infantry men," Cloud pointed out, indicating the men in blue. "They're regular army. That one there, is a Soldier Second Class. You can tell cuz he's wearing purple instead of black. Only First Class Soldiers wear black uniforms."

"That guy looks like a scientist," Harry pointed at a man who was walking with a slight hunch, his greasy black hair pulled into a ponytail. His face was scrunched up as if he smelled something unpleasant.

"I wonder what they're doing here?" Cloud asked. He and Harry turned to Hermione.

The girl raised an eyebrow at them. "How should I know?"

"I thought you knew everything."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I retain all the information I read."

"And you remember everything everyone's ever said ever."

"Well none of them have said anything to me so I don't know why they're here." Hermione crossed her arms in a pout and the boys turned back to watch the soldiers. They were all heading to the mansion.

"Well we'd better get going," Cloud sighed. "We still need to gather firewood."

"It would be so much easier if Mama Strife let me use my wand," Harry complained.

"There's too great of a chance of being seen," Cloud said. "You know what the villagers would do if they saw your magic. It's not normal."

"People in the city use magic all the time!"

"They use materia," Hermione jumped in. "Materia is actually crystallized Mako that one uses their mind to activate. As such, using it too much can result in draining a person of their energy."

"But I don't use materia, I use a wand. And I've never gotten tired from using that."

"You're the only person in the world who uses a wand," Cloud muttered.

"That's not true," Hermione argued. "He's the only person we _know_ of. Harry inherited that wand from his father, which would imply his father could use it as well. And if it runs in the family, it's safe to assume there are other people in the world who use wands. We just haven't met them yet."

"And we're never going to, living in this small-minded town."

Cloud jumped from the overhang on the inn to the ground. Harry leapt after him while Hermione sat and carefully lowered herself down. Cloud reached up and helped her.

"When I become Soldier we'll go search for more people like you," Cloud promised.

Harry rolled his eyes. "You've gotta join up first."

"This summer for sure!" Cloud exclaimed. "I've finally managed to save enough money to afford the trip."

Hermione wrapped her arm around Cloud's. "I'm going to miss you terribly."

Don't worry, once I make Soldier I'll be making good money. I'll send for all of you and you can come live in the city with me."

"Sounds good to me," Harry said. "This place sucks."

"Why don't you come with me?"

"Nah, I'm not much of a fighter," Harry shrugged. "I'll stay here and keep an eye on Mama Strife and Hermione." He grinned at his adopted brother. "Just don't forget about us when you're a big time soldier boy."

Cloud smiled and hooked his arm around his shoulder. "Never."

Three laughed as they wandered into the forest.

* * *

><p>Hermione sighed and hiccuped as she stumbled out of the local tavern. Even though she was underage, Hermione had made a deal with the owner of the pub. She did his accounting books and in return he let her get drunk when she needed to.<p>

Hermione didn't particularly like getting drunk. She always felt terrible the next morning and often threw up. But Hermione had a very powerful mind and sometimes drinking was all she could do to shut it off for awhile. No one really understood how troublesome her perfect memory could be. She never forgot _anything_. Her mind was always working, always thinking. Even when she slept, problems and solutions ran through her dreams. Alcohol was the one thing she'd found that let her have a moments piece from herself. She wasn't proud of her drinking habit, but until she found something else to help her, it was all Hermione had.

As the girl stumbled along the road she thought she saw a figure walking towards her. Hermione wasn't worried though. No one in this town would touch her. Even though she was a striking woman with a curvy body and decent sized breasts, Hermione was the town outcast. No one liked herself or her brothers and wanted nothing to do with any of them. So it came as a great surprise when the person walking towards her stopped and stared.

"Excuse me," she said, trying hard not to slur her worlds.

The man, he was dressed in a white lab coat, caught her arm. "Girls shouldn't wander around by themselves, especially in such a state."

Hermione frowned and pulled her arm away. "I'm perfectly fine," she assured the man. "I don't live far."

"I suppose there is nothing better to do in such a backwater place than drink your life away."

"I'll have you know I am quiet smart! I just need to turn my brain off every couple of nights." She giggled and burped in a very unladylike manner.

"I'm sure you are," the scientist rolled his eyes and began to walk away.

"I am! I have an eidetic memory!" Hermione's face fell and she looked away. "It's such a burden sometimes... no one gets it. They just say they wish they were like me."

The scientist frowned at her. "People with eidetic memories are so rare that there are some who don't believe the condition doesn't exist."

Hermione sniffed. Alcohol always made her so sad. "I wish."

"Prove to me that you are the way you say."

She glared at the man, feeling a rash of anger. "Why should I? I don't owe you anything."

"I'm simply curious. From one person of intelligence to another."

Hermione shrugged at that. If this man was as smart as he claimed it would be nice to talk to someone on her intellectual level. It wasn't that she thought Cloud or Harry were dumb, it was just that no one was as smart as her.

"Very well. When you first arrived in town you stayed in the inn. There were four infantrymen and one Second Class Soldier. Each infantrymen wore the standard blue uniform of Shinra but the youngest had a yellow stain the front, suggesting he just ate and spilled mustard on himself. The second infantrymen had tear below the knee in his pants. The last infantryman's uniform was well kept, suggesting he's more reliable than the other two. He had three freckles on his face in a circle on his left cheek. As for the Soldier, he was taller than the infantrymen by precisely two inches and had dark hair and gray eyes that glowed with the telltale sign of Mako enhancements."

While she had spoken, Hermione had become tired. She leaned against the side of a building and closed her eyes, talking absently. She was sleepy and ready for bed. She couldn't even remember why she was talking anymore. Shaking her head, Hermione stood.

"I need to go home," she said to no one in particular.

"Perhaps you would care to join me," the scientist called. "I would like to study your memory a little more. It's such a rare gift."

"More like a curse. I need to go to bed."

"Put please, I insist," the man grabbed her arm. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Even those with enhancements don't have the perfect recall you do. I would love to study you more."

"I am not a lap rat!" Hermione exclaimed and attempted to push the man away. He didn't budge and she was feeling too drunk to fight back properly.

"No, you are much more than that, my dear girl." He pulled the girl with him towards the inn. Hermione tried to resist but she didn't have the energy. All she wanted to do was go to sleep.

No one was awake to see her vanish with the scientist.

* * *

><p>Two weeks later, Harry and Cloud came down from the mountains, both angry and sad. They made their way home, hanging their heads. Mrs. Strife was on the porch and ran to them.<p>

"Anything?" she asked desperately.

They shook their heads.

"There's no sign that anyone's been up in the mountains recently," Cloud reported dully.

"Where could she have gone?" Harry demanded. "This place is so small! We've looked everywhere!"

"She vanished the same day Shinra left."

"You think they took her?" Harry demanded. "But why?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out." Cloud looked up, a determined glint in his eye. "I'm going to Costa de Sol and joining up. Those Shinra creeps took her, there's no other explanation. I'll join Soldier and find her!"

"I'm coming too," Harry declared. "Shinra's a lot more dangerous than we ever thought. You're going to need someone to watch your back and help search."

"Boys..."

They turned to their mother. "Don't worry mom, we'll find Hermione. We'll find her and bring her back home."

"The scientist who came here was named Hojo. If we find him, we'll find her."

Mrs. Strife nodded, her eyes sad. She pulled the boys into a tight hug, kissing their cheeks. "I'm counting on you, boys. Find your sister and then all three of you come home safely to me."

"We will mom," Cloud promised.

"You can count on us," Harry agreed.

They stayed together for a long moment before pulling away and heading home.

**A/N: So that's the first chapter. Short but I feel it served it's purpose. The story is going to take place in the FF7 world with only Harry and Hermione the only wizards mentioned for the time being but I do plan on bringing in wizards eventually. I hinted at that during this chapter with Cloud saying he was going to try and find others like Harry.**

**Well let me know what you think. Does it look interesting? Are you not sure? Was it terrible? If you thought it was terrible, please be nice when telling me why you thought that. Thank you!**

**Please Review!**

**Staryday**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Well no one seemed interested at all in this story. I didn't get even a single review. :( So I changed the title and summary to try and draw more readers in. Maybe everyone was just withholding their opinions on chapter one to see if they liked chapter two better? Hopefully.**

**Anyways, here's the second chapter and remember, this is going to be a pretty fast paced story. And please excuse any small mistakes, I only had time to read this through once. Thank you! Enjoy.**

**Chapter Two**

Harry collapsed on the ground when the instructor finally blew his whistle, signaling an end to the running. He could no longer feel his legs and his head was starting to spin from the extreme effort it took to keep running for two hours straight. Next to him, Cloud fell to his knees, panting harshly. He was in slightly better condition than his adoptive brother. Cloud's dream had always been to join Soldier so he had been training the last few months at home. Harry did not share that dream and hadn't joined him, a fact he was regretting horribly now.

Around them their squad mates were also collapsed on the ground, breathing hard. The instructor stood over them, looking down at the new recruits with distaste.

"What's this? Was running too hard for you pathetic little girls?" the man shouted. "You've been in Shinra for four months now! You should have better stamina than this! Get up, all of you! We'll do it again!"

A loud groan issued from all the recruits and one of them, a city boy named Davis, leaned over and vomited. The boys leaned away from him while the instructor scowled.

"Pathetic! All of you! You all dream of being a Soldier but can't even hack it in basic training! You know how long a Soldier runs? All day! Without getting tired or throwing up!"

"Yeah, they have Mako," one of the boys whispered. Unfortunately the instructor heard him.

"You think it's all Mako? Mako enhances what's already there! You all have nothing! If we gave you Mako now, it would be wasted because you have no skills to enhance!"

Harry shook his head. "That's not how Mako works," he whispered to Cloud. The blonde nodded.

"Take a ten minute break. Potter, get Davis to the bench and get water in him. We'll begin gun practice next."

Harry stumbled to his feet and helped Davis to his, walking him over to the bench where the water cooler sat. No one else moved, staying where they had fallen on the grass. At least they didn't have to run for gun practice. They just stood in one spot and tried to hit the target. After Harry made sure Davis was okay, he grabbed everyone's water bottles and stumbled back to the group, tossing them tiredly at the boys. They all took them with grunts of thanks.

Harry sat next to Cloud again and leaned his head on his shoulder. He hated military life. All the shouting and running and mistreatment infuriated the young boy. He didn't see the point of making them run until they vomited or berating and making them think they were worthless. There were so many better ways to teach a person or make them stronger. He would have thought the military, with how many recruits it received, would have figured that out by now.

"I can't believe you wanted to do this," Harry mumbled.

"It'll get better. It's hard now because we're weak. Once we start getting stronger things will get easier."

"You've been saying that for four months now. I'm not sure I believe it anymore."

"You're doing really well in the written portion," Cloud pointed out. "You have the highest grades in the class."

"Too bad the army wants brawny idiots like the instructor more than smart people like me."

A shadow suddenly fell over the two and Harry froze. "Think I'm a 'brawny idiot' do you, Potter?"

Harry groaned, knowing he was in trouble.

"Well since you're already so smart, you don't need to participate in class for the rest of the day."

Harry and Cloud eyed the man suspiciously.

"And since you won't be in classes, I don't think it's fair to the others if you sit around doing nothing. So why don't you get running?"

Harry blinked at him. "For how long, sir?"

The instructor smiled cruelly. "Why, until classes are over, of course. It wouldn't be fair for you to lie around."

Harry's eyes widened. "But that's four hours from now! We've already been running for two!"

"Then I suggest you pace yourself, cadet. I will be back periodically –a smart boy like you knows what that means, right?— to check on you and make sure you're actually running."

Harry fumbled for the right words to argue with but the instructor was having none of it. He shouted for Harry to get running and the boy forced his tired body to get up. Cloud sent him a worried look but Harry just shrugged. There wasn't anything left to do now but run.

Eventually everyone left for their next class, leaving Harry to run on his own. Cloud hung back for a moment but the instructor shouted at him to move his ass. Once everyone was gone, Harry stopped and flung himself on the ground. He checked his watch and set the alarm before relaxing, groaning at his sore body.

"Skipping class, yo?" a voice called.

Harry blinked his eyes open as a shadow fell over him.

"Reno?" he asked in surprise.

"Who else, yo?"

Harry sat up. He and Reno had met a couple days after Harry joined Soldier. The redhead had been pulling a prank on the new recruits when Harry and Cloud stumbled on him. In exchange for their silence, Reno had agreed to leave the brothers out of any future pranks. He had become a constant... presence after that. Harry didn't want to call him a friend, as he was rude and constantly insulting them, but he also didn't think Reno was a bad person. Really, Harry hadn't decided what he thought about the young Turk.

"I'm not skipping," Harry answered. "The stupid instructor heard me call him an idiot and told me to run for the next four hours straight."

"So why ain't ya running?"

"Because I'm not work chocobo! No one can run for that long without stopping!" Harry pouted. "He's such an idiot. He teaches all the classes today so he can't come check up on me until the break. So long as I'm running around during that time he'll never be any wiser that I'm sitting down now."

"Most cadets wouldn't risk disobeying their CO, you know," Reno pointed out.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Most cadets are idiots."

The redhead burst out laughing. "I'm not gonna argue with ya on that, yo!"

Harry noticed movement near the door to the building and frowned at the bald man wearing sunglasses. It wasn't a particularly bright day, as it was fall, and sunglasses seemed unnecessary.

"Who's the guy watching you?" Harry asked.

"Hmm? Oh that's Rude, my new partner," Reno answered casually.

Harry looked up in surprise. Turks always worked in groups of two or more. Reno was still technically a trainee but in his final year, so he was allowed to go on missions, as long as he had a senior Turk with him. Up until now, no one had been available to "babysit" the new addition so Reno had been stuck at headquarters. The redhead had shown his displeasure at the situation by causing all sorts of trouble and mayhem.

"What'd he do to get stuck with you?"

Reno whacked the boy on the head. "His old partner got offed on a mission or somethin' and now he gets the _privilege_ of working with me, yo."

"I doubt that's how he sees it," Harry laughed, ducking another hit. "Well congratulations. This means you can actually go on missions now, right?"

"Yeah, anythin' to get outta this fucking place! It's sooo boring, yo!" Reno flopped on the ground dramatically at the same time Harry's watch started to beep. With an annoyed sigh, Harry stood.

"Well I have to get running again," he grumbled.

"Break's not for another ten minutes."

"Yeah but I want to be out of breath so the instructor thinks I ran the whole the time." He shrugged. "You know, make it more believable."

Reno stood, wiping his clothes off. "Makes sense to me. Have fun, soldier-boy."

Harry made a face at the pet name before turning and running around the track. Reno joined Rude, glancing over his shoulder.

"Kid's too smart to be wasted on Soldier, yo" he muttered absently. Rude merely stared at him before leading the way inside.

* * *

><p>Cloud frowned at the target almost fifty feet away from him. His aim with a gun wasn't very good but at least he'd manage to hit it. Most of the boys around him had missed the large circle completely. Harry was a better shot, as he had to aim carefully when he used his wand. Cloud was decent with a bow and arrow, as that's what they used to hunt with in the mountains as none of the villagers could really afford guns. Using a gun, however was a lot different than his bow. Guns had recoil and left Cloud's shoulder sore and were much more powerful than his outdated bow.<p>

After gun practice came sword training, Cloud's favorite class. The cadets were given dull broadswords and made to stand in straights lines. They practiced swings and proper forms over and over until most of the boys were too bored to focus. Cloud never let his focus wander though, as he wanted to be perfect. Soldiers often used swords over all other weapons and if he wanted to make it to First Class, he needed to be flawless in the basics.

The class ended and most of the boy's grumbled in complaint. Sword training had been the one thing everyone looked forward to when they first joined up but now it was like a slap in the face. What could have been the best class turned out to be one of the most boring. Cloud carefully returned his sword to the cabinet before following slowly after the rest of the cadets. His mind traveled to Harry and he hoped his brother was doing okay. He really didn't like running.

A hand was placed on Cloud's shoulder and the blonde jumped slightly, turning around. He blinked and stared in amazement at the dark haired man who was grinning at him. His hair was long and spiked down and his eyes shown blue with Mako. For a moment all Cloud could do was stair, his mouth hanging open slightly and his eyes wide.

"Hey, I saw you in class just now, you're doing great!" Zack Fair, First Class Soldier complimented with a wide grin. "They make you run through the basics like that to see who has the discipline to follow orders."

He looked at Cloud expectantly but Cloud couldn't find his voice. He just continued to stair and Zack sighed. He smiled at the blonde in a resigned way, as if he was used to this reaction from cadets, which he probably was.

"Well you're doing a good job, keep it up, Spiky." Zack walked away with a casual wave. He was almost around the corner before Cloud managed to find his voice.

"Thank you!" he called, his voice only catching once. Zack looked over his shoulder in surprise before grinning. He nodded and disappeared down the hall.

Cloud couldn't help but feel giddy as he sat down in the last class of the day, tactics. It was a class devoted to teaching military battle strategies and the theory behind using materia. Normally Cloud forced himself to pay attention, as he knew very little about the subject matter taught, but today he couldn't stop thinking about Zack. The First Class had singled him out out of everyone in the whole group to tell him what a good job he was doing. Him! Cloud! No one had ever singled the blonde out for something good before. Cloud barely managed to keep from giggling like silly school girl.

Once class was over, Cloud hurried to the track area. Harry was still running but didn't look as bad as Cloud had expected. He was tired, that was obvious, but he was still going slowly around the field. The instructor was yelling something at him to which Harry answered tersely. The man seemed satisfied and dismissed the younger boy, who collapsed on the ground now that his punishment was over. Cloud quickly grabbed some water and ran over to him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, sitting down and holding out the drink. Harry drank it carefully.

"Yeah, it wasn't that bad. I stopped running when no one was around." He leaned back on his hands. "Even so, I'm exhausted! I don't ever want to stand again."

"Let's get some food in the mess hall and you can go to bed early tonight," Cloud suggested. "Lay down, I'll stretch your legs for you."

"What?" Harry muttered.

"You need to stretch. You're going to be sore after all this running but it'll be worse if you don't stretch."

"I'm not moving."

Cloud shook his head and shoved his brother down on his back. He lifted Harry's leg bent it in towards his chest. Harry groaned but didn't argue as Cloud carefully helped him. Once he was done, Harry grinned lazily up at the blonde.

"You should carry me to the mess hall too."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "You're not that helpless." He reached down and pulled Harry to his feet. "And if you would keep your mouth shut this kind of stuff wouldn't happen."

Harry scowled at him. "I don't buy into it. I know you want to be a Soldier, but the army is just terrible sometimes. How do you expect someone to learn when you're just berating them constantly?"

"It builds character."

"No, it builds resentment. We need to find Hermione quick before I get kicked out for some crap like insubordination."

Cloud nodded solemnly. That was a definite possibility.

* * *

><p>Another two months passed and the two boys had been cadets for six months now. Harry had learned to keep his mouth shut (most of the time) and started to improve. Cloud had steadily climbed the ranks in his class and was now in the top five. That day all the cadets were going to be judged by a group of first and second Soldiers. Their teachers had been drilling them harder than ever to prepare for the grueling tests. It was rumored that if a cadet didn't perform up to standard they were demoted and sent to the regulation army, crushing any dream they had of becoming Soldiers.<p>

It was early morning and Harry and Cloud were the only two awake in their bunk of four. The other two boys were from the city and used to sleeping in late. Secretly, Cloud didn't think they would make it past today. The boys, Chris and Steven, weren't doing well in classes and had a lot of trouble keeping up in physical training. After six months of being in Shinra neither boy had shown much improvement.

Harry exited the very small bathroom attached to the bunker, his hair dripping wet. The sun was just starting to raise but they couldn't see it, since there were no windows in the bunkers. Cloud was relaxing on his bed, waiting for his turn in the shower.

"You nervous?" Harry asked quietly, not wanting to wake the other two. Usually Cloud woke them when he finished with his shower.

"Yeah, if we fail today, we'll be washed out."

Harry nodded and dried his hair with his towel. He didn't even both trying to comb it. "I'm nervous too. If we get sent to the regular army we'll never be able to find Hermione. I can't believe it's been six months since she was kidnapped."

Cloud stared down at the bed sadly. "She's strong, I know she'll be able to survive anything until we can find her." He looked up at Harry hopefully. "And if we pass today we'll have access to more of the building. We've already searched everywhere we're allowed to go and come up empty handed."

Harry nodded. "I also heard that sometimes cadets get chosen by Soldiers for personal training. If we can get chosen for that we'll have even more freedom to search around." Harry smiled slightly and shrugged. "Well, if you get chosen, that is."

"You're doing fine," Cloud insisted.

"Sure, but that's all I'm doing. I'm not interested in becoming a Soldier, Cloud. I just want to find our sister and take her back to Mama Strife."

"We'll find her," Cloud assured. "After we pass the tests today we'll be in a better position to do it. Don't worry, we won't give up."

Harry sighed. "It's not us giving up that I'm worried about."

Cloud didn't answer as he slipped into the bathroom to shower. His muscles were tense with nerves. So much was riding on this simple test, whether he could continue his search for Hermione and continue to pursue his dream of becoming Soldier. He could tell Harry was nervous too as the boy couldn't sit still. They finished getting ready and woke their bunk mates before leaving for the mess hall.

As usual, Cloud and Harry were some of the first to arrive. They sat down, poking at their horrible food moodily. Cloud forced himself to eat half of his breakfast but stopped when his stomach grumbled in protest. Harry ate a single bite before shoving the plate away. The mess hall slowly began to fill with cadets. Like Harry and Cloud, most of the boys only ate a couple of bites of food before giving up.

Eventually everyone made their way to the training grounds where the instructors were waiting. Harry and Cloud joined the line and Harry fingered his wrist. Cloud noticed the gesture and leaned over.

"Do you have your wand?" he asked quietly.

Harry nodded. "I brought it just in case things went bad," he explained. "If it looks like we're about to fail I'll cast some magic to give us a boost."

"That's cheating!" Cloud exclaimed.

"So? We're here to rescue Hermione, not join Soldier." Harry glanced over and caught the angry look on Cloud's face and rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'm here for that."

"I want to save her too! But using your magic is too dangerous! Everyone's going to be watching us. Who knows what they'll do if they see you casting spells with a wand?"

"I'll be discreet and I won't do it unless necessary."

Cloud grumbled, looking away. He didn't like the idea of cheating and he certainly didn't want anyone to know about Harry's strange version of magic. Hermione had been treated terribly enough for her powerful mind, it frightened Cloud to think what would happen to Harry if anyone discovered his powers.

All the cadets finished lining up and their instructors began ordering them into groups. Harry and Cloud were separated, Cloud joining Chris, his bunk mate, and two other cadets he didn't know, while Harry was grouped with three boys he'd never met. As they were doing this, second and first class Soldiers began to file onto the field and into the bleachers. They didn't address the cadets or even seem to be interested in them at all, but the cadets suddenly felt nervous and began to shift uncomfortably.

Cloud glanced at the bleachers and was surprised to Zack Fair bouncing around them, saying hello to everyone before he stopped to sit with a large man with broad shoulders and a square face. Without warning Zack looked up and his eyes met Cloud's. The blonde gasped and blushed lightly when the Soldier smiled and mouthed "good luck."

Cloud quickly turned back to the instructor and focused on what they would be doing.

* * *

><p>Zack couldn't contain his energy as he ran around the bleachers, saying hello to everyone he knew and introducing himself to those he didn't. The other Soldiers weren't nearly as excited as Zack was to be sitting on the old bleachers on a cold day watching the new kids makes fools of themselves. The tests were really more of a formality and, despite what the rumors said, very few people failed them. A cadet had to screw up royally to be booted out of the program this early on.<p>

Zack finished chatting with Kunsel before plopping down next to his mentor Angeal. The man as usual, was sitting with perfect posture and grace. His face was kept neutral as he observed the cadets on the training field. Zack looked up to see them too and was surprised when a pair of pretty blue eyes was watching him. He grinned and whispered the guy a good luck, laughing when the blonde's face turned bright red.

"See something you like?" Angeal asked calmly.

Zack grinned at him. "They're just too cute! All the cadets are just small and nervous and freaking out like we're going to jump of these bleachers and eat them!"

A Second Class Soldier named Mario spoke upon hearing Zack's words. "There are couple down there I wouldn't mind making a nice meal of, if you know what you mean."

The guy sitting next to him rolled his eyes and elbowed his friend in the stomach.

"Ah sorry, going through a bit of a dry spell," Mario laughed. "Just got an injection the other day and it's really getting to me."

"I understand," Zack nodded sympathetically. Getting injected with Mako was no picnic. Everyone reacted differently to it, some became raging angry and nearly homicidal, some became uncontrollably horny, like Mario, and others had hallucinations. Even after years of getting them, the effects didn't lesson any and the Soldiers simply learned how to deal with it.

A whistle blew and all the cadets began moving as one, performing their the basic sword style they had been taught. Zack ignored them and turned to Angeal.

"So what are Gen and Seph up to these days? I haven't seen either one of them for a while now."

"Sephiroth had to travel with the president to Junon and Genesis was assigned a mission in the Gold Saucer."

"The Gold Saucer?" Zack asked in surprise. "What the hell is he supposed to be doing there?"

"The Saucer may be a tourist destination but it's also a breeding ground for illegal activity. Many criminals meet there to make their plans."

Zack nodded seriously. He was slightly jealous that Genesis had gotten to go on that mission and not him. Zack had never had the money to go on vacation until he became Soldier and would have loved to see the famous casino/amusement park. Then again, that's probably why he didn't get chosen; he would have been too easily distracted to perform his duties properly.

There was a thud on the bleachers and Zack and Angeal turned to see Reno, Rude, and surprisingly, Tseng step onto the bleachers. The three walked straight to Angeal, nodding absently at the Soldiers who saluted Tseng. Tseng took a seat while Reno and Rude leaned against the railing.

"Hey what are you guys doing here?" Zack asked pleasantly.

"The Turks are required to observe the new cadets during tests and exams," Tseng explained shortly.

"Yes, but why are _you_ here doing that?" Angeal pressed. "Surely someone of your status could find others to do this?"

Tseng glanced at him. "I could same the same for you."

"I happen to enjoy watching the new talent. It's refreshing to see such passion and people so full of dreams."

Reno snorted at his answer and rolled his eyes. Angeal ignored him while Zack pouted slightly at the dismissal of his mentor. "Well you guys are late, they started ten minutes ago."

"Did anything interesting happen?" Reno drawled.

"No."

"Then we're not late."

Reno laughed while Zack scowled, turning back to watch the cadets. They were in the portion where the instructors shouted questions at them and they had to answer quickly and efficiently. Zack hated this part. He remembered all the written tests he had taken, most of which he failed. It wasn't that Zack wasn't smart –he wouldn't be a First Class if he weren't— but taking tests was not his strong point. They were so boring and tedious that his attention span didn't last long enough to do a good job.

The blonde boy Zack had caught staring was answering now in a quiet voice. The instructor ordered him to speak up and he repeated himself, this time talking louder. Zack noticed another cadet further down the line scowl at the teacher. His green eyes narrowed and he fingered his wrist as if he wanted to pull a dagger from his sleeve and attack the man for yelling at his friend. Zack couldn't help but smile; he loved seeing such good friends being protective of one another.

As the questions came to an end there was a five minute break before they would start with the next test. Up until this point, the cadets had never fought with each other one on one. All their sword training had been with dummies but no actual people. Today would be their first time fighting a living opponent. The instructors did this on purpose to see who had a natural instinct for sword play and who could perform well under pressure.

Zack turned to the Turks with a smile. "So you guys watching anyone in particular?"

"Nope," Reno shrugged. "Just here as a formality."

"I'm cheering for the little spiky blonde kid!" Zack announced. Everyone glanced at him. "What? I like him! I've seen him in class and he works really hard."

"You getting all moist for a cadet, porcupine?" Reno teased. "You know that's not allowed, riiiight?"

Zack rolled his eyes but the Second Class from earlier, Mario, spoke up. "Gaia I wish that weren't true, some of these boys are just so—"

Once again his friend elbowed him in the stomach and Mario coughed, not finishing his sentence.

"You know, Mario, if you're that desperate I'm sure Reno over there could hook you up with someone, if you know what I mean," Zack offered.

"Hey yo! What makes you think I know people like that?"

Zack stared at him and Reno scowled.

"That's okay, Zack," Mario interrupted. "I'll be fine in a day or so. This never lasts long."

They turned back to the cadets who were now paired off and ready to fight. This was the only part really worth watching for the Soldiers as they were curious if there was any talent among the new recruits. Everyone fought at the same time as it would take far too long for the many cadets to take turns. It didn't both the Soldiers though, who could tell who had a knack for sword play within moments of the mock fight starting.

Zack's eyes scanned the cadets and he flinched slightly as he spotted a boy with red hair slip and fall. The kid scrambled to his feet, looking mortified and probably praying that no one had seen that. He definitely didn't have what it took to be a Soldier. Zack spotted the spiky blonde he liked and watched the fight with interest. The cadet Spiky was fighting was trying to use his larger size and superior strength to overwhelm him and, for a moment, it looked to be working, but then the smaller boy surprised him by dropping his sword and rolling forward before shooting up and punching his opponent in the jaw. The large boy stumbled back and the smaller one used the opportunity to disarm him.

Zack grinned at the display, pleased with what he saw. They didn't teach moves like that in basic training, proving that the blonde had talent. Zack continued to survey the group until he spotted the dark haired boy who had glared protectively on his friend's behalf earlier. He was holding his own in his fight, performing the basics of sword play flawlessly, but he didn't have the instinct to do anything beyond what he'd been taught. His opponent was a teen of medium build who suddenly darted forward, kicking up sand into the boy's face.

"Tsh, cheep move," Zack complained to himself.

The dark haired boy was disarmed quickly but instead of giving up, he lashed out. He kicked the man in his shin and reached into his sleeve but before he could pull out whatever he had hidden there, the blonde appeared and grabbed his wrist. Zack raised an eyebrow as they stared each other down before the dark haired youth turned away, allowing himself to relax.

"Huh, that was almost entertaining, yo," Reno muttered. Zack glanced over and realized the redhead had been watching the same fight. "Wander what he's got hidden up his sleeve?"

"He's lucky Spiky stopped him from pulling it out," Zack commented. "Would have gotten into a lot of trouble if he'd drawn a weapon that wasn't part of the test."

"That blonde you like did well," Angeal spoke up. "He has good instincts in a fight."

"Right, right! He took that guy down easily!" Zack bounced up and down and the instructors below dismissed the cadets, telling them they had the rest of the day off and the results of the test would be announced tomorrow. Zack jumped to his feet and yelled goodbye to his friends. He wanted to see the blonde and congratulate him on doing a good job.

Zack missed the questioning look Reno sent to Tseng, who nodded slightly. The redhead smirked and sauntered away down the bleachers after Zack. Angeal glanced at the lead Turk.

"See someone you like?"

Tseng merely shrugged. "Perhaps."

* * *

><p>Cloud and Harry were standing off to the side of the training grounds away from everyone else. While the other cadets were eagerly discussing how well or poorly they thought the did, Cloud was lecturing his brother.<p>

"What were you thinking?" he demanded.

"That guy pulled a cheap trick to beat me!"

"So what? You were just going to pull your wand out and curse him right in front of everyone?"

"No!" Harry yelled, sounding childish. "I was just going to jinx him a little..."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "You have to stop being so reckless! Start thinking before you act! If you had been caught there's no telling what would have happened! The least of which would be us not finding Hermione."

Harry looked away guiltily but before anything more could be said, someone ran up to the arguing pair. He stopped in front of the two, not noticing the tense atmosphere.

"Hey! There you are Spiky!" Zack smiled widely as he stood before the two brothers who were staring at him openly. "I saw you out there, you did great! You have a natural talent for swordsmanship!"

Cloud turned bright red. "Th-thank you Lieutenant!"

"Oh, you don't have to call me that! My name's Zack, so just call me Zack! I don't like formalities. I have to use them on missions though, be all proper and salute and call everyone by their titles and what not, but when I'm here at Shinra I prefer to be much more casual."

He continued to smile at the slightly shell shocked teens. Zack slowly realized the two were just gawking at him like idiots and probably weren't going to stop anytime soon. His grin fell slightly as he pondered how he could get them to calm down and loosen up.

Zack's answer came in the form of a redheaded Turk. Reno sidled up to the group, his cocky grin in place. "You talk too much, Fair."

"Hey Reno, what are you doing down here?" Zack asked. He completely ignored Reno's comment about talking too much. Really, Zack had heard those words from so many different people on so many different occasions that he considered them to a special greeting just for him. After all, how many other people could say they were greeted at least once a day by someone saying they talked too much?

"Just came to say hey to my buddy as his bro," Reno shrugged.

Zack whipped around. "You two are _brothers_? But you don't look anything alike! You're like, complete opposites!"

Cloud and Harry shrugged. "I'm adopted," Harry said shortly.

"Oh," Zack rubbed the back of his head. "Well that explains that. Hey what are your names, anyway?"

Since Cloud didn't seem to be able to speak at the moment, Harry answered for both of them. "I'm Harry Potter, he's Cloud Strife."

"Cloud really? That's such a funny name! Were you born on a rainy day?"

Cloud blinked at strange question. Harry titled his head and glanced at Reno, silently asking if this guy was insulting Cloud or if he really was that dumb. Reno smirked and shrugged. Harry turned back to Zack, surprised that a First Class wasn't smarter than this.

"Uh anyways," Zack pressed on when no one answered. "I just wanted to say good job on the test."

Cloud finally snapped out of his daze and found his voice. "Thank you. We were pretty worried this morning but it turned out to not be that bad."

"Cadets always blow things out of proportion," Zack assured. "Though they have some help exaggerating things..." he glanced shrewdly at Reno who just smiled.

Reno turned to Harry. "You need'ta get used to dirty tricks, a lot of people are gunna use them, 'specially if you're better than them."

Harry flushed slightly. "You saw that?"

"Saw you reaching for somethin' up your sleeve, yo" Reno teased.

Harry instinctively hid his arm behind his back, making Reno grin viciously. Cloud scowled at the redhead and moved closer to his brother. Cloud knew the two were friends but he didn't approve. Reno was a Turk and the Turks had a bad reputation. Not to mention Reno himself was rude and completely disregarded any and all social niceties.

"Whatever you've got hidden up there, I'd hide it better next time, yo. The first place anyone checks is up the sleeve."

Harry nodded slightly and looked away, embarrassed at being figured out so easily. Cloud continued to glare at Reno until Zack spoke again.

"Whatever, the test is over. You guys hungry? I can take you upstairs to the good cafeteria. It has actual food!"

Harry and Cloud looked excited at the idea of actual food, especially since they had skipped breakfast but Zack and Reno's phones rang at the same time, surprising them. They each answered the ringing.

"Hello!"

"Yo."

Both were silent for a minute before Zack looked over at Reno in surprise. Reno was frowning and hung up his phone. A second later Zack did as well.

"Guess we'll have to take a rain check on the lunch," Zack shrugged. "Got a mission with some Turk."

"Yeah, got a mission with a Soldier. Sure hope it's not a stupid one, yo."

Reno turned and left without so much as a goodbye. Zack grinned and congratulated the two once more before running off after Reno. He slung his arm around his shoulders, ignoring Reno when the redhead tried to squirm away. Once they were gone, Harry turned to Cloud.

"That was strange."

Cloud nodded before shaking his head quickly. "You see what I meant about your wand! Now let's go put it away and get some lunch."

Harry nodded and followed his brother without question.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I thought it would be fun to make Harry a Turk, since he's already stated he doesn't want to be a Soldier. Plus I love Reno and this is a perfect excuse to have Reno around a lot. I also enjoy writing Zack. He's one of my favorite characters ever.**

**Anyway, weird question. I've already decided to do a Cloud/Zack pairing but would it be weird to do a Harry/Reno pairing? I've never seen it done and wanted to try something new.**

**Thanks for reading, pretty please review?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So long chapter here. Make it last because I don't know when I'll update again, what with the holidays and all. And again, forgive any mistakes, I only read through this once.**

**And I would like to thank everyone for reviewing! It made me so happy. I believe I responded to everyone who was logged in when they reviewed and to everyone else, thank you! By overwhelming (really, I think it might have been unanimous) majority, this story will now have a Reno/Harry pairing. I've changed the story summary to include it.**

**Enjoy!**

**Oh yeah! And remember everyone, this is an M rated story.**

**Chapter Three**

A week later Cloud and Harry were shocked to find they had their room to themselves. After the exam, Chris had been asked to leave the program. It was obvious to everyone the city boy didn't want to be in the military; he had merely joined to appease his parents. He was lazy and had no physical skills and wasn't overly intelligent. After that Steven quit, not wanting to be without his friend. He had only joined to keep Chris company, after all. With both of them gone, Cloud and Harry got their barracks to themselves until new recruits arrived. Happily, the boys shoved the empty to beds against the far wall and moved their own so they had more room.

"So we have access to the first twenty floors of the building now," Harry commented, flopping on his bed and looking over at Cloud. "I was thinking we could go to explore today, since we don't have classes."

Cloud nodded. "It'll be faster if we split up. We've already scoured the first through fifth floors, so we'll start on the sixth. You check six through thirteen and I'll check fourteen through twenty."

Harry agreed. "And remember, if you spot a scientist, follow them, but be discreet! We don't want to tip them off that we're on to them."

"We should go now, before everyone starts waking up. Hopefully we'll be able to cover a lot of ground before people start getting in the way."

The brothers left their room, stopping at the cafeteria to grab a couple of apples before making their way to the elevators. They rode it to floor six and Harry stepped out.

"Be careful," he ordered Cloud. The blonde nodded seriously as the doors closed.

"You too."

Harry turned to look around the sixth floor. Like they had expected, the floor was empty of people this early in the morning. Trying to be casual, Harry walked forward, looking around curiously. There was a large bar off to the left side that sold coffees and energy drinks. It was currently closed so Harry walked past. There wasn't anything else on the floor except tables and fake trees. After wandering around for a few minutes, Harry made his way to the stairs. He moved on to the seventh floor.

The seventh floor was filled with offices. Many cubicles lined the walls with office equipment scattered about the floor. A few people were sitting at their computers, a large cup of coffee in their hands. Harry walked past them as quietly as possible, looking around for anything suspicious. Worried about how quickly he was moving through the floors without finding anything, Harry made his way up to the eighth. He didn't noticed a shadow follow him casually.

The eighth floor was a gym. It wasn't very hi-tech, having a few old bicycles, two stair masters, and various weight machines. No one was using the equipment so Harry moved around the floor unhindered. A few vending machines lined the walls and Harry wandered over to them. He casually hit some buttons at random and grabbed the sides, shaking the machines. All of them were plugged in and looked like real machines so Harry moved on. He poked at the exercise equipment but nothing seemed off there either. With an annoyed sigh, Harry moved on to the ninth floor, rubbing the back of his neck as it prickled.

The ninth floor was more cubicles. He did a quick lap around them, not wanting to be spotted by the unfortunate souls who had to come into work on Sunday. The back of his neck tingled again and Harry frowned. He hurried into the stairwell and pulled his wand from his jeans. He had take Reno's advice and no longer hid it on his wrist, but had slipped the polished wood between his belt on his pants, and covered it with a long shirt. He focused and waved his wand over his head, tapping it. A feeling like warm water spilling over him spread through his body and Harry knew he was nearly invisible to passersby. He ducked under the stairs and hid, waiting to see if his instincts were right and someone was following him.

It didn't take long before the door opened and, to Harry's surprise, Tseng of the Turks walked in. Honestly, Harry had expected it to be Reno. The redhead followed him around sometimes just to mess with him. Tseng glanced around briefly but Harry held completely still, even going as far as to hold his breath. Tseng continued on and Harry quietly followed after him. He wasn't sure why such a powerful man was trailing him but Harry was extremely curious. He debated about confronting him. Tseng was a very important person who could make Harry's life pretty miserable if he pissed him off. On the other hand, Harry hadn't been doing anything wrong so there was no reason to get him into trouble.

Harry decided he would ask, but keep his tone respectful, so as not to upset the deadly man. With a wave of his wand, Harry removed his charm and stepped out of the stairwell, directly behind Tseng.

"Why are you following me?" he asked, and flinched when the question came out more accusatory than he meant.

If Tseng was surprised that Harry was behind him, he didn't show it. He merely turned around and appraised the boy with an almost bored face. "Why would I bother following some lowly cadet? Do you think I have nothing better to do with my time?"

Harry blinked and then frowned. Tseng had a point, perhaps it had been a coincident that they both were taking the stairs. It was a pretty far fetched idea but Harry wasn't willing to push his luck. If Tseng wanted to act like this was nothing, the teen was fine with that.

"Of course, sir," Harry shrugged. "My apologies for being paranoid. If you'll excuse me, I was just returning to my rooms."

Harry turned to leave but the smooth voice stopped him. "Though I must admit, my curiosity was piqued to see a young cadet awake so early on a Sunday skulking around the company as if looking for something."

Harry scowled. "I wasn't skulking. I was merely exploring the building." He gestured around himself vaguely. "If I don't look around, how am I supposed to know what's here? There's a gym a couple floors down that I didn't know about until now."

"And the reason for the stairs?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm a Soldier Cadet. I can handle walking up a few stairs."

Tseng suddenly smiled and Harry was thrown off guard. Out of nowhere his instincts screamed at him to duck. Harry didn't question it and whipped around, ducking so quickly he lost his footing and fell. Reno was had appeared, from Gaia only knew where, and thrown a punch at Harry's head. The boy managed to dodge the hit and stared up at his friend in disbelief.

"What the hell, Reno?" he shouted.

The teen just smiled in that crooked way he always did. He glanced at Tseng and Harry turned to the older Turk, who had a thoughtful look on his face.

"There's potential," he said and without another word walked away. Reno laughed and pulled Harry to his feet.

"What's is going on?" Harry demanded.

Reno just shrugged. "Just testing a theory, yo. Go about your business." He ran off after Tseng before Harry could demand an explanation.

* * *

><p>Cloud relaxed against the wall as he rode the elevator to the fourteenth floor. Elevators were such a novelty for him. Until he came to Shinra he had never been on one before. The tallest building in Nibelheim was the inn and it was only three stories high. Even though the circumstances for Cloud coming to Midgar weren't ideal, he was glad he did. There was so much more to the world than the small town he'd grown up in and he wanted to see it all. As soon as they found Hermione, Cloud would finish his training and become a Solider and then travel the world, seeing everything it had to offer.<p>

Cloud stepped off the elevator when it dinged. The fourteenth floor was full of offices. Long hallways were filled with closed doors, all with golden nameplates on them. Cloud wandered past them, occasionally checking a door to see if it was unlocked. They never were. He made his way back to the elevator and pressed the button for the fifteenth floor. Cloud knew it was silly to ride the elevator instead of taking the stairs but he couldn't help himself. He enjoyed riding it up and down.

The next two floors were filled with offices again and Cloud didn't bother looking through them. When he arrived at the sixteenth floor, Cloud stepped off the elevator passed a woman pushing a cart full of cleaning supplies. He nodded and smiled politely, to which the woman scowled and walked away with a huff. Cloud shook his head. One difference between city people and small town folk was the attitude. People in the city weren't always the kindest people and to someone with Cloud's polite upbringing, some of them were down right rude.

The sixteenth floor seemed to be some sort of lunch area. There was a buffet set up against the wall, though no food was in it. A large bar was on the opposite side and a girl in a button up black blouse and knee length skirt was leaning on the counter, looking bored. She spotted Cloud and perked up, looking excited for some human contact. Cloud didn't want anything from the bar but felt obligated to walk over and at least say hello.

As he stepped up to the register, the girl smiled widely. Her teeth were crooked and covered in metal and Cloud realized she had braces. There was a dentist in Rocket Town but it was a long trip for the people of Nibelheim to see regularly. No one went to him unless it was an emergency that couldn't be fixed with some alcohol and a pair of pliers.

"Hi! Welcome to Shinra Coffee Capitol! We have everything you need from a nice hot cup of joe to a cool refreshing smoothy! You name it and we'll make it!"

Cloud blinked at the girl. "That's a mouthful," he said quietly.

The girl giggled. "I know, I have to say it to everyone though."

"That must be a pain when you're busy."

The girl dramatically hit the counter. "Oh Gaia you have _no idea_! And then everyone acts like you're just saying it to annoy them. It's kinda why I like working the morning shift. Even though it's super slow, the few people who do come around are like you, nice and they talk to me."

Cloud nodded and flashed a small smile at the girl, Tiffany, her name tag read. He glanced up at the menu. The coffee stand did seem to have everything. Various fruits and pastry were available to compliment any drinks.

"What are you in the mood for?" the hyper brunette asked. She glanced between the menu and Cloud.

The blonde shrugged and felt in his pocket. He barely had any money but he supposed he could spend a little bit on a drink.

"What are dumbapples?" he asked.

Tiffany giggled. "Oh, those are what locals call Banora Apples. They're only found in the town of Banora and are better than any other apple." She winked at Cloud. "It's a popular drink with cadets because First Class Soldier, General Genesis Rhapsodos, loves to drink it."

Cloud nodded slowly. "Well I'd like one of those please."

She nodded and skipped over to the cooler to grab the drink. She returned to the register and punched a few buttons before looking up at Cloud. "That'll be twenty five gil!"

Cloud nearly dropped his jaw in shock. "Twenty-five!" he exclaimed. He looked at the small container. It didn't look like he would get more than a few gulps it was so tiny.

"Oh yeah, it's kinda on the pricey the side, since it's imported and all." Cloud didn't notice when the girl's eyes flickered past him and her smile widened. She waved at the next customer before turning back to Cloud.

"Do you still want it?"

Slowly, Cloud shook his head. He looked up at her apologetically. "I'm sorry I can't afford that." He only had thirty gil to his name and he wasn't going to spend twenty-five of it on a drink.

She looked sad for a moment when a hand landed on Cloud's shoulder, startling him. "I'll get it for him, Tiffany. Just put it on Gen's tap."

Zack Fair was standing there, smiling happily. Cloud blushed brightly at the man's offer to get his drink.

"You don't have too..."

"Don't worry about it!" Zack dismissed. "Genesis would be furious if he found out someone didn't get to try his favorite juice because they couldn't afford it." He turned to Tiffany. "So what are you doing working all the way down here? I missed you upstairs."

"Oh? Did you come all the way down here just for me?" She giggled into her hand.

"Actually upstairs was out of this damn juice so Genesis made me run all the way down here for it. Said he can't start his day without it." Zack rolled his eyes in annoyance.

Tiffany looked disappointed by the answer but shook it off. "Well the girl who usually works here got fired for being a member of the Silver Elite."

"What a bitch," Zack said with a shake of his head, his smile revealing he wasn't really mad. Tiffany laughed. "I know, right?"

"Well I'll just have to come down here more often then. No one makes coffee as good as you." He winked and Tiffany blushed, smiling happily. "The usual please. Charge it and Cloud's drink to Genesis and give a holler when it's done."

"Of course!" Tiffany pushed Cloud's drink to him, smiling before walking away to make whatever drinks Zack considered his "usual." Zack gestured for Cloud to follow and they sat at a table underneath a large fake tree.

"So what are doing up here so early?" Zack asked pleasantly, sitting on the table instead of the chairs around it. Cloud sat in a chair and opened his drink.

"I'm just exploring," he said. He took a sip of the juice and looked surprised. "This stuff is really good. Thank you."

"Don't thank me, Gen's paying for it," Zack laughed. "But I'll be sure to pass along the praise. I don't usually come down here but the coffee place upstairs was out of juice and Genesis absolutely refuses to start a meeting without it." Zack rolled his eyes. "He can be such a baby sometimes."

Cloud didn't comment. The other Soldier must have been pretty bad if someone like Zack was calling him childish.

"So today's your day off, right?" Zack asked.

Cloud nodded.

"Awe, I wish it was my day off! But I'm stuck in boring meetings all day. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm super happy that Sephiroth promoted me to Lieutenant General but holy crap does it come with a lot of paperwork and meetings. I went on more missions when I was second class!"

"I've never been on one before," Cloud admitted.

"You're still cadet. They'll send you on a few small ones in the near future. Just grunt work mainly, working with the regular army or maybe hunting some weak monsters. They like to make sure cadets are good and trained before sending them off on real missions."

"Hunting monsters wouldn't be so bad," Cloud mused. "My brother and I were the best hunters in the village. We always sold the meat in the market during the winter to help our mom out."

Zack frowned. "These monsters aren't for eating. You just kill them."

Cloud blinked. "Oh yeah, I know..."

Zack laughed, ruffling Cloud's hair. "So you're a good hunter then? What'd you use a gun or sword?"

"No one in Nibelheim could afford guns. And if someone did get a gun it was useless because we didn't have ammo. No one had swords either. We used axes or bows. I'm a decent shot with a bow."

"A bow? Wow, that is like, stone age weapons."

Cloud bristled slightly and Zack laughed again.

"Well I'll teach you how to kill a monster with a sword," Zack went on. "And I'll bet you'll like it way more than some old fashioned bow."

Cloud's eyes widened. "Really? You'll teach me?"

"Sure! Let's see I have free time... how about Wednesday at three? No, no, you have class then. How about Thursday around eight? I know that's kinda late."

"That's fine!" Cloud assured eagerly. "I don't mind."

"Good!" Tiffany suddenly called out to them and Zack jumped up. "Then I'll see you Thursday at eight. Meet me right here and I'll take you up to the Soldier training rooms. The ones cadets use suck."

"Yeah, sure."

Zack grinned. "See ya later, Spiky!" He waved over his shoulder and ran to get his drinks from Tiffany. He flirted with her for a moment before running off. When he was gone, Tiffany waved Cloud over to her.

"So, was it awesome?" she asked quickly. He blinked in surprise. "Getting to meet a First Class Soldier! Especially one as amazing as Zack. He's so nice! And cute."

Cloud nodded. "He really is."

Tiffany sent him a look and Cloud blushed as he realized what he'd said. "I mean, he's nice, not cute. Well, he's good looking, but that's not what I noticed. Well I did but..."

Tiffany's laughter put an end to his babbling. "Don't worry, Cloud. Everyone says the same thing." She smiled. "Well make sure you come and see me sometimes. I'll be here in the mornings for a long time and if I'm not here, I'll be up on the Soldier floor, number forty-nine."

"Okay," Cloud agreed. "Goodbye."

Cloud smiled as he returned to the elevators, completely forgetting about his mission to search the rest of the floors.

* * *

><p>By Tuesday Cloud and Harry had managed to finish searching the first twenty-floors of he Shinra building. They hadn't spotted any scientists or found anything out of the ordinary. They took turns searching either late at night past curfew or early in the morning before classes started. Currently it was Thursday and both brothers were getting ready for classes. Neither was in a talkative mood so they dressed silently. When they were ready, Harry stood in front of the door, taking a deep breath and opening it slowly.<p>

Cloud frowned. "What's wrong with you lately? You're acting really paranoid."

"Of course I am," Harry snapped. He shut the door behind them, looking down the halls before moving. "You would be too if you had Reno jumping out at you all the freaking time!"

"Is he still messing with you?" Cloud asked in surprise. "I would have thought he'd gotten bored by now."

Reno had been surprise attacking Harry for the last couple of days. The redhead offered no explanation for his behavior and would just laugh and walk away when Harry demanded one. At first Harry had thought it was some twisted joke but now he was ready to throttle his so-called friend. It was exhausting, constantly having to look over his shoulder and be on alert.

"Maybe you should go after him," Cloud suggested.

"What, you mean try and surprise attack him?"

"Sure why not? Give him a taste of his own medicine. It might make him stop."

"Either that or he'll retaliate worse than ever." Harry stopped and glanced around the corner before walking around it. Cloud shook his head.

"Can't be worse than this."

The two made it to the cafeteria without incident and grabbed a couple of trays. Like usual, they were among the first people in line. As the cafeteria worker filled up their plates with slop Harry felt his neck tingle. He stopped and looked around suspiciously. He knew Reno was nearby but couldn't see where. His instincts hadn't been wrong yet, but then where would he be?

"Hey, move," Cloud muttered, shoving Harry forward. Harry took a step and reached out for his plate of mush, looking over his shoulder. When he turned back, Reno jumped out from behind the cafeteria counter, screaming loudly. Cloud and Harry both jumped backwards in surprise with twins yelps. Harry dropped his entire plate of food over his stomach, ruining his uniform.

Reno was practically doubled over in laughter. Harry glared at the man. "That's it! You want a fight! I'll give you one!" Harry turned and stormed away and Cloud noticed his brother finger the place he had hid wand. He shook his head and turned back to the redhead who was still chuckling.

"You're going to regret that," he stated calmly.

Reno rolled his eyes. "What's he gonna do, yo? Sneak up on me and yell boo?"

Cloud just shook his head and walked away. Reno didn't know it but Harry could be vicious when he was angry. Years of growing up being bullied had made him very good at what Cloud referred to as "silent revenge." Harry was pretty good and sneaking in places and setting up pranks and then disappearing without being detected.

Reno may be a Turk, but Harry was a force to be reckoned with.

* * *

><p>Harry missed his first class while he was cleaning his uniform. The instructor made him run laps as punishment which just made the boy even angrier. He would get Reno back for this. He just needed to be patient. But as Harry ran around the track he spotted a black suit and slowed to a light jog. The man who Reno had said was his new partner, Rude, was walking by. Suddenly feeling inspired, Harry ran from the track and pulled his wand out. He disillusioned himself before ducking inside and following Rude from a safe distance. Harry had to be careful when walking the halls as most people didn't noticed him as they walked past. It wasn't that Harry was invisible, but he did blend in perfectly with his surroundings. Unless someone was looking directly at him, no one noticed the young cadet.<p>

Rude stopped before the elevator and Harry frowned. Even with his charm, he would be spotted if he attempted to get on the elevator with the Turk. Lucky for Harry a large group of people crowded around the elevator doors. They were all wearing business suits and carried briefcases. Smiling, Harry joined the group as they stuffed themselves into the elevator with Rude. He made sure to put his back against the wall and stand so there was a person between him and Rude's eye line at all time. The black man didn't look around as the elevator rose, keeping his gaze straight ahead. Harry could tell the he was uncomfortable in the enclosed space.

The doors opened onto floor fifty and Rude forced his way off the elevator. Harry quickly followed, ignoring the confused grunts from the people he pushed aside. To Harry's surprise, Rude went directly to the stairs. He walked down two floors and Harry followed as quietly as he could. They ended up in a hallway with a couple of offices scattered about. Harry looked around curiously before focusing on Rude. He entered an unmarked office. Harry spotted a chair in what was probably a waiting room and knelt behind it. After a few minutes, Rude left the office and walked into another one across from it.

Harry took his chance and slipped up to the door. Rude had shut and locked it behind him but Harry wasn't concerned. He pressed against the wood and pulled out wand out, keeping his body close to the door, Harry used his magic to unlock it. With a smug look, Harry slipped inside.

The office was medium sized with two desks. One was perfectly kept with nothing out of place. The other was a mess of papers and had various monsters built from paperclips on it. Harry barely managed to stop from giggling. He hadn't thought he would get his revenge so soon. He had only decided that morning to get Reno back for his harassment. Walking around the desk, Harry was careful not to touch anything. Reno was a shrewd bastard and Harry wouldn't have put it past him to booby-trap his desk in some way.

Thinking, Harry fingered his wand, which he had put back up his sleeve. He felt his disillusionment charm wear off and made a mental note to recast it before he left. Harry frowned as he thought. He wished he had brought something with him, like paint or something equally messy. Wait, messy...

Harry glanced over at a potted plant sitting in the corner. He walked to it and noticed it was real. Grinning, Harry leaned over and pulled his wand out. A small jet of water sprout from the tip, turning the dirt into mud. Harry grabbed handfuls of it and walked over to the chair, smearing the mud on the seat. He ran back to the plant and grabbed some of the dirt that hadn't gotten wet and sprinkled it over Reno's computer keyboard. He made sure to get as much dirt in the keys as possible. Once that was done he grabbed more mud, spreading it under the desk where Reno's feet would sit.

Harry glanced around. He wanted to put some dirt piles in the drawers but was afraid to open them. Deciding he couldn't do anything more at the moment, Harry carefully wiped away any dirt that fallen from on the floor. He didn't want Reno to be tipped off before he sat down in the muddy chair. Once all trace of his presence was gone, Harry recast his charm and slipped from the office, remembering to lock it again. He hurried to the open area where a chair was sitting and hid behind it, hoping it wouldn't be long before Reno showed up.

Harry's prayers were answered. Almost ten minutes later, Reno sauntered into the room. He was whistling some off key note, looking like he owned the world. Harry smirked. He would wipe that smirk from his face. Harry's disillusionment charm wore off but he was too focused on Reno to notice. The redhead unlocked his office and entered and Harry sat back, feeling pleased. A hand was suddenly placed on his shoulder and the boy jumped nearly a foot in the air. Without meaning too, he swung out at the person who grabbed him only to have his arm caught in a vice like grip.

"Uh, si-sir...!" Harry gasped as he realized it was Tseng who had grabbed his arm. The leader Turk quirked an eyebrow at him at the same time Rude came out of the larger office. The black man stared at the two in surprise.

"What are you doing here, cadet?" Tseng demanded, his voice cold.

A loud shout echoed from Reno's office followed by cursing. Harry smirked briefly before forcing the smile from his face when Tseng stared at him.

"Just paying back a friend, sir."

Reno came running from the office, his clothes covered in wet mud. His boots left muddy footprints on the dark carpeting. "What the hell, yo? Someone covered my shit in dirt!" He spotted Harry and pointed a dramatic finger at the younger teen. "You!"

Harry didn't say anything, as Tseng was still standing right next to him. But Reno could tell by the superior look in Harry's eyes that he had played the prank and was proud of it.

"How did you get up here?" Tseng asked, ignoring Reno for the moment. The redhead spluttered and crossed his arms, looking down at his ruined suit angrily.

Harry glanced at him and considered making up an excuse but Tseng looked deadly serious. He wanted an answer and something in his gaze told Harry it would not be smart to lie.

"I followed Rude."

Tseng glanced at the man, who looked surprised.

"How?" Rude asked.

Harry shrugged. "I hid in the big group of people that got on the elevator with you."

Rude lifted an eyebrow and glanced between Reno and Tseng. Both were surprised as Rude was clearly saying without words that he hadn't noticed the boy at all. Harry must have had extremely good stealth skills to be able to follow a seasoned Turk without detection.

"Why did you cover Reno with... mud?"

Harry crossed his arms, trying hard not to pout. "Because he deserved it."

"All I do was scare ya a little, yo!"

"Yeah, all freaking week!" Harry exclaimed. "You've been hiding around corners and jumping out at me everyday! I haven't been able to relax because of you!"

Reno started to say something but Tseng interrupted him. "Reno has been tailing you on my orders."

Harry stared at the man in shock. "Your orders?" he yelled. "What, you bored up here doing paperwork? Have to get your rocks off by picking on cadets?"

Harry realized after he'd spoken that he probably shouldn't have said that to the leader of the Turks. In his anger he had spoken without thinking, a trait he really needed to work on, and was probably going to regret it.

However, to Harry's surprise, Tseng actually smiled at his outburst. It was small and more annoyed than happy but it wasn't what Harry was expecting. Across the room, Reno burst into laughter.

"No wonder you like him, Reno. He's just like you," Tseng commented dryly.

"I know, it's great, yo!"

Harry looked between the three Turks suspiciously. "Mr. Potter, Reno has been scouting you for a possible position within the Turks," Tseng explained. "We are very selective with our pupils and Reno noticed your intellect and... let's say devious qualities sometime ago. I had him follow you these past couple of days to test how well your instincts were and how you performed under constant threat of attack."

"Why not just come right out and ask?"

"That would be stupid, yo," Reno dismissed. "We don't want just anybody. We want someone who's worth their salt and we think that someone is you."

Harry frowned and was surprised when Rude spoke next.

"You have impressive stealth abilities and are intelligent."

"Not ta mention you know how'to get 'round people. I've seen ya slack off on your punishments and never get caught."

"We will have to work on controlling your temper and that mouth of yours," Tseng continued. "But with training, I believe you would make a passable Turk."

"I'm a Soldier cadet," Harry pointed out.

Reno rolled his eyes. "Come on kid, you hate that shit and everyone with half a brain knows it, yo. Think about it, Harry, if ya join the Turks there won't be any more runnin'."

Harry almost blurted out yes for that reason alone. He managed to keep his mouth shut though and thought about it. The Turks had free reign of the Shinra building and an easier course load than Soldiers. From what Harry knew, the Turks taught by doing, not sitting around in classes or training. If Harry joined them, he would have more opportunity to search for Hermione.

Also, not having to run miles and miles everyday was just too tempting to pass up.

"Okay," Harry agreed slowly. "I'll give it a try." He met Reno's gaze. "For now."

Reno just grinned wider. "Spoken like a true Turk."

"Very well," Tseng spoke and Harry turned to face him. "Reno is still considered a trainee for another couple of months so Rude will be officially classified as your instructor. You will answer to him and Reno." Tseng faced the redhead. "Since you found him, Mr. Potter will be your responsibility."

Reno just waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah yeah, I get it, yo."

"Welcome to the Turks, Harry Potter." Tseng didn't say anything else as he walked away and Harry felt inexplicably trapped all of a sudden.

* * *

><p>Cloud wasn't pleased when Harry showed up after classes had ended that day and told him he'd been recruited as a Turk. Cloud didn't like Turks, he didn't trust them. And he especially didn't like or trust Reno.<p>

"The Turks have more reign over the building," Harry explained. "It will make finding our sister a lot easier."

"They'll be watching you all the time," Cloud countered.

"I can ditch Reno without a problem. And they go on missions too. I'll be alone then."

Cloud crossed his arms. "I don't like it."

"Well I already said yes, so deal with it."

Cloud glared at his brother's back. Harry was tense and straightening his bed. He only ever cleaned when he was nervous or upset. Finally, the blonde sighed. He glanced at the clock and realized it was time for him to go meet Zack.

"I have to go," he muttered. "We'll talk more when I get back."

"There's nothing to talk about."

Cloud ignored him and left. He couldn't believe Harry would do something so reckless. The Turks had a reputation for being nothing but evil. They were information gatherers and assassins. Getting involved with them would bring nothing but trouble. Cloud had enough to worry about with finding Hermione, now he had to worry about his brother getting involved with the Turks?

Cloud was still fuming when Zack arrived at their meeting place. The Soldier stopped and watched the pacing blonde curiously. He could tell Cloud was upset but he couldn't help but smile. The little blonde was cute with his soft pink lips jutting out and his bright blue eyes narrowed. His spiky hair barely swayed as he swung around to pace in the opposite direction.

Happily, Zack bounced up to his friend. "Hey Spiky! What's got you all worked up?"

Cloud jumped slightly and hurried to try and hide his anger. He blushed and looked down. "Nothing."

"Sure, sure," Zack answered. He'd let the matter go for now and get the answer out of the blonde later, when he was least expecting it. "So, you ready to train?"

Cloud looked up eagerly and nodded. Zack waved him to follow and they climbed on the elevator. "Okay so to get to the Soldier floor you need a key card," Zack explained as he pulled his out. "So you won't be able to come up here without me. I was thinking today we could just work on some simple stuff. I know you've got the basics down pretty good so we won't worry about those."

Cloud glanced at Zack curiously. "Why...?"

Zack grinned. "Why am I spending my precious time teaching you?" Cloud flushed but nodded. "I don't know, I love training people who have passion. I've seen how much you want to become Solider and I want to help you achieve your dream, just like my mentor helped me achieve mine!"

Cloud nodded and relaxed slightly. Zack had a way about him that put people at ease. Maybe he should try and introduce the First to Harry. His brother was always too tense and suspicious. Maybe meeting Zack would help convince the other teen that Solider was the way to go, not Turks.

The elevator opened and Zack led them out. The Solider floor was large and contained a training room, materia room, mission briefing room, and a lounge area for off-duty Soldiers. The lounge was full now with Soldiers of different classes sitting around and watching TV. They waved and called hello to Zack who smiled and kept walking. He lead Cloud a gym area that was filled with various weight machines and an open area for sword training.

"So this is the Soldier's private gym," he explained. "The equipment here is specially designed for us. We tend to break the normal stuff on accident so they started making reinforced machines."

"Wow," Cloud whispered looking at all the heavy equipment. Zack grinned, loving his awestruck reactions.

"Over here is a where we keep our weapons. Everything is real, no dull edges like what you guys use." He opened a cabinet full of swords of different styles and sizes. Cloud's eyes lit up as he fingered a couple of the blades. The blades were so sharp he nicked his finger and jumped slightly, startled.

"Hey hey! I just told you there were sharp!" Zack exclaimed, grabbing his fingers.

"It's just a little scratch—"

Cloud's voice cut off abruptly as Zack sucked his finger into his mouth. His eyes opened wide as he stared at the First, feeling Zack's tongue lick his finger, wiping away the small amount of blood. The man pulled back, pouting slightly at Cloud.

"Be more careful," Zack ordered. Cloud nodded and quickly shoved his hand into his pocket, his face a nice cheery red. Zack ignored it and turned to the weapons. "Here, we can use these for now." He held out two broadswords, handing one to Cloud and keeping the other for himself. Zack gestured them into the center of the room.

"Okay, so take your stance."

Shaking off his embarrassment from a moment ago, Cloud did as told. Zack looked him over before nodding approvingly.

"Good. Now the first thing I'm going to teach you is a forward thrust. It's a pretty basic move. You thrust your sword directly ahead of you and then twist to the side, using your momentum to roll away from your enemy. The forward thrust is pretty good to use against monsters, as they're not that smart, but you don't want to use it against people. It's easily blocked and leaves you open to counterattacks."

Zack demonstrated the move and then had Cloud imitate it. He corrected his form and at one point stood behind the blonde, grabbing his arms and moving them through the motion. Cloud barely managed to control his blush by focusing on the sword play. They kept at it for an hour before Zack called for a stop. Cloud sat down on the floor, breathing heavy. He wasn't exhausted but he did feel tired, like he'd gotten a good work out. Zack flopped down next to him, smiling and not even out of breath.

"So, you think you have it down?"

Cloud nodded. "I think so. I guess I won't know until I try and use it."

"I'll ask Seph for permission to take you into the training room. That way you can practice with fake monsters before you have to go up against a real one."

"I've faced real monsters before!" Cloud insisted.

"Oh right, with your stone age bow and arrow," Zack teased.

The blonde rolled his eyes. "I'll bet I'm a better shot than you, even with your enhanced skills."

"Oh I'll take that bet!" Zack laughed. "Give me a couple of days and I'll find a bow and arrow and then you'll be eating those words! I'll bet Tseng will know where to get one."

At the mention of the leader Turk, Cloud's good mood vanished. He frowned and turned away, his mind back on his brother. Zack noticed right away and leaned forward.

"Hey, what's wrong with you? You have a bad run in with Tseng? I know he's kinda creepy but he's actually a decent guy, once you get to know him."

"He's a Turk."

Zack shrugged. "Turks aren't all that bad. Sure they're definitely people you want to look out for and you don't want to cross them, but most of them are good people at heart. You just gotta wade through the tough-guy act and find the awesome person beneath it all."

Cloud stared at Zack hard, thinking his words through. "You know that guy Reno, right?" Zack nodded. "Is he a good person, underneath it all?"

Zack laughed again. "Above all else, Reno is an asshole. There's no better word that describes him. But you know, he's also damn good at what he does. I'd be okay if he was watching my back in a fight." At Cloud's thoughtful look, Zack asked, "Why are you curious about him?"

"He convinced my brother to join the Turks."

Zack's eyebrows nearly disappeared into his hair. "Really? Well good for him, I guess."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, your brother didn't want to be a Soldier, did he? I could tell when I met him, he didn't have the same drive or passion as you did. I figured he was here just to support you."

Cloud blinked. Was Harry really that miserable that everyone noticed it except Cloud? It was true Harry never wanted to be a Soldier and the only reason he was at Shinra was to help find Hermione but Cloud hadn't thought it was that terrible for him. Aside from whining about having to run a lot, Harry never offered a single word of complaint.

Cloud suddenly stood, feeling determined. "I need to talk to him. I was an ass about the Turks and need to apologize."

Zack smiled. "Then don't let me stop you. I'll find you again when I have another day off."

Cloud nodded. "Thank you, Zack. I appreciate it."

Zack waved him off and Cloud left, hurrying back to the elevator. Once he was gone, Zack jumped up and returned the swords they'd been using to the cabinet. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted his longtime friend Kunsel.

"Hey man, what's up?" Zack asked happily.

Kunsel just shrugged. "Just watching you trying to flirt with some cadet."

"I was not flirting!"

Kunsel laughed. "Oh please. You practically sucked his finger off! And then getting all close to him, pretending to show him a sword move. You just wanted to touch him."

Zack scoffed. "As if I need to resort to such cheap tricks. Have you seen me? I'm gorgeous."

Kunsel rolled his eyes, not that Zack could see it because he was wearing an army helmet. "Whatever you say, man. Just don't end up like Mario, lusting after something you can't have. Cadets are off-limits, even for First Class Lieutenant Generals."

"Don't you worry about me. I'm a big boy."

Kunsel looked at Zack's crotch. "Indeed."

Zack burst out laughing, shoving his friend in the shoulder. They laughed before leaving the training room, arms hooked around each others shoulders.

* * *

><p>When Cloud returned to his room, Harry was already in bed, his back to the door. Cloud stripped off his clothes and tossed his boots aside before forcing Harry over, climbing into his bed with him. Harry growled in anger but Cloud ignored it. He turned so their backs were touching.<p>

"We're not little kids anymore, go sleep in your own bed."

"I'm sorry."

"If you're sorry, get out of my bed!"

"No idiot, I'm sorry for being an ass. If you want to join the Turks, I'm not going to stop you."

Harry didn't say anything but stopped trying to force Cloud to move. The blonde smiled lightly and continued.

"I guess I forgot you have no interest in being a Soldier. I was so wrapped up in making my dream come true and finding Hermione that I forgot about you. You're a good person, Harry."

"I didn't want to complain," Harry admitted quietly. "I don't buy into all of this... military stuff. I don't like getting screamed at for no reason and I don't believe for a second that the abuse builds character. And running. Gaia do I hate running."

Cloud laughed. "I know. I'm sorry I forgot that."

"It's okay." They turned over so they were facing each other. Harry's eyes glowed slightly in the dark, not as bright as a Soldiers but enough to be noticeable. "I don't even know if I'm going to stay with the Turks. Right now Hermione is top priority. After we rescue her, then we can decide what to do next."

Cloud nodded. "Zack took me up to the Soldier floor today. I was thinking if I can manage to steal his key card, we can go anywhere in the building. And he's a First Class, so he wouldn't get into trouble for something like that."

Harry thought it over. "Don't do it yet. Let's wait until we have a better idea of what floor we want to search before making a move like that."

"Okay," Cloud agreed. "But we should be able to get further now, with you becoming a Turk and me training with Zack."

Harry hmm-ed in agreement and closed his eyes. Cloud smiled at him a moment longer before closing his as well, shuffling around to get more comfortable. Harry popped an eye open.

"Hey, we made up, so you can go back to your own bed now."

"Nah, I'm pretty comfortable where I am."

Harry growled in his throat and turned over with a huff, ignoring Cloud's snicker next to him.

* * *

><p>High in the upper levels of Shinra, a pair of brown eyes opened. The gaze was hazy and unfocused and the person's mind was slow. She attempted to sit up but found her body wouldn't respond to her commands. She looked around her, confused as to why she couldn't move and why thinking was so hard.<p>

"Are you awake?" A voice reached her ears and it took a long moment to realize someone was talking and they were talking to her. She blinked. "Don't worry, the haze you're in is normal. The fact that you can wake up at all proves exactly how powerful your mind truly is."

She tried to focus on the face hovering above her. The features were blurry but she thought she could make out black hair and glasses.

"I'm ready now to start testing. Hopefully this time will be a success." The man moved away and began speaking but not to her. It sounded like he was dictating to someone or something. "Subject H has been prepped. We are now ready to attempt the transfer to Subject J."

She could hear the sound of machines running and felt something tugging on her hair. The tugging became more persistent and began to hurt. She closed her eyes, trying to fight the uncomfortable pull.

"The transfer isn't going through," the man's voice spoke, sounding frustrated. "Once again the problem lies with the method. I have a few other methods to attempt but it's time to start planning a complete lobotomy of Subject H."

The painful tugging finally came to an end and her eyes began to close. The last thing she remembered before slipping into the darkness was the image of two boys, one with spiky blonde hair and the other with messy black.

"Cloud... Harry..." She fell asleep, grateful to not have to suffer anymore.

**A/N: So couple of chapter notes. Reno and Harry are fun to write. As for the bow and arrow thing, I don't remember in any of the FF7 games, there being a bow and arrow, which is why I decided to make it kinda like a joke that they were considered antiques that only country folk use. **

**So on a side note, I've been writing a ASGZC one-shot. Though it'll probably be more like a two-shot when I'm done. I'm terrible at keeping things short. If I ever finish it, I'll post it for everyone to enjoy.**

**Last question, does anyone know where I can post a PWP-lemon for FF7? I tried posting on AFF but that site is terrible. Even with an account and following their directions I can't post anything. So what are other sites that will host adult stuff like that? Last I knew, this site didn't like that sort of thing.**

**Okay, okay, I'm done talking down. Thanks for reading and please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I think I need to get a beta for this. I've gotten so lazy with corrections. I don't even remember if I did them for this chapter! Hehe well forgive me if I didn't.**

**Oh! I almost forgot to mention but this story doesn't really follow cannon. Angeal and Genesis are still alive and not degrading and Sephiroth isn't evil. I haven't decided yet if he's going to stay that way.**

**Chapter Four**

The next morning a knock on the door woke Harry and Cloud. The two quickly untangled from each other and stumbled to open it. One of the instructors, Marvin, was standing there with a clipboard and scowling. He took in their rumbled state and noticed only one bed was slept in before scowling. Cloud started to explain but Harry nudged him in the side. They didn't owe this jackass anything. Marvin was one on the more cruel instructors and Harry disliked him a lot, to say the least.

"Cadets. I've been informed Potter is transferring to the Turks." Harry nodded, not saying a word. Marvin held out the clipboard. "You need to sign this and then you'll be moved to new rooms tomorrow."

"New rooms?" Cloud asked.

"Turks have their own private rooms in a different part of the building. They don't room with Soldiers. Sign that and get packed."

Harry looked at the paperwork. "I'll return it to you after I finish reading it."

"It's a standard agreement, just sign it so I can be done with you, slacker," Marvin snapped.

Harry glared at him. "I'm not signing anything I haven't read over. You'll get it back when I'm finished." Harry slammed the door in his face and Cloud sighed. He sent a mild glare at his brother.

"You know, I still have to go to his class."

"Sorry."

Cloud leaned over Harry's shoulder to glance at the document. "Do you understand any of it?" he asked.

"Not really. Hermione was –is— the smart one. But I figured I should at least try." He scowled. "I don't want to switch rooms."

Cloud shrugged. "I don't think there's anything you can do to stop it. I have to get ready for classes, what are you doing today?"

"Reno told me to meet him in his office. Maybe I'll ask Rude to help me with this."

Cloud nodded and the boys got ready for the day. Once they were done they each parted ways, Cloud off to his classes and Harry heading upstairs to Reno's office. Reno and Rude were already there when Harry knocked on the door and entered.

"'Sup kid," Reno greeted, pressing a few buttons on his keyboard. "Like my new keyboard? The last one got fucking ruined by some asshole who has a thing for dirt. Had to get a new suit too, yo."

Harry shrugged unapologetically. He held up the document Marvin had given him. "What's this all about?"

Rude glanced up. "Standard issue Shinra legal disclosure. All employees must sign it before starting work."

"What's it all mean? I don't understand any of this legal talk."

"Basically, think of every bad thing Shinra could possibly do to ya. It's all in that paper and when you sign it, you give them permission to do it, yo."

Harry scowled. "Then why should I sign it?"

"Cuz if ya don't, ya get fired."

Scowling unhappily, Harry grabbed a pen from Reno's desk and signed the document. There was nothing he could do about it now. He needed to stay in Shinra to find Hermione. Once that was done, Harry folded the paper into his pocket and crossed his arms.

"They told me I have to switch rooms."

"Turks do not room with Soldiers."

"I like where I'm at, I don't want to move."

"So? Why the fuck you telling us?" Reno grumbled. "We don't have nuthing to do with that."

"Then who do I talk to?"

Reno rolled his eyes. "For fucks sake will you stop whinin' already? You're a Turk now. Figure it out your goddamn self."

Harry was a little put out by the answer but didn't press the matter any further. Instead he took a seat in a chair in front of Rude's desk. "So what are we doing today?"

"Paperwork," Reno growled.

"We need to get you registered for a weapon and set up with a computer that will be for company use," Rude explained. "Do you have a weapons preference?"

"Er, I guess I like guns. Smaller ones though."

"To carry a gun you must pass a certification test. Reno has already set it up."

"How'd you know I was going to pick a gun?"

"Please, you're terrible with a sword and the only other weapon you've held is a gun," Reno drawled. He shut his computer down and stood. "Let's go, they're expecting ya at the range in a few minutes. You coming, partner?"

Rude nodded and stood, slipping a pair of sunglasses into his breast pocket, just in case something happened to his current pair. Harry shrugged and followed after them.

"So what do Turks do?" Harry asked as they climbed into the elevator.

"Whatever's needed."

"Yeah, but what does that _mean_?"

"What the fuck do you think it means, yo? You do what you're told and that's that."

Harry scowled at him. "What crawled up your butt today?"

Reno glared at him. "Dirt."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh get over it."

The two bickered the entire way to the shooting range and didn't stop until Rude cleared his throat. A Second Class Soldier was waiting for them and nodded in greeting.

"Yo Kunsel," Reno greeted. "This kid needs'ta get certified to carry a gun."

"No problem," Kunsel assured. "Just sign these and grab whichever gun you feel comfortable with. You have to hit the target seven times and only get ten shots."

"Actually, you have to hit the target ten times and you only get ten shots," Reno interrupted. Harry glanced at him. "Turks are a lot more demanding than Soldiers."

"Soldiers don't need the extra three shots," Kunsel said pleasantly.

Harry stepped up to a stand issue Shinra rifle and fingered it. He noticed a hand pistol a little ways down and walked over to that instead. It was slightly longer than most hand pistols and weighed the same as his wand. If felt comfortable in his hand and Harry decided he liked it.

"Which target?" he asked.

"The seventy-five."

Nodding, Harry lifted the gun and aimed. His had a habit of aiming his wand too far to the right so he adjusted accordingly, hoping the gun would be about the same. Once he was ready, Harry squeezed the trigger. The recoil was more intense than he expected and he nearly stumbled. The bullet hit the target and Harry retook his position, this time using two hands to compensate for the force of the gun. He shot again and checked his aim, pleased with where the bullet landed. After that, Harry shot the remaining eight bullets quickly before setting the gun down.

Kunsel hit a button and the target came forward. All the shots had hit their mark just slightly right of the center. Harry frowned, he had thought he compensated enough to hit the middle of the target but apparently not.

"Not bad," Kunsel complimented. "Okay, you pass. Take these papers to the weapons locker and they'll issue you a gun. If you already have one of your own you have to make sure to register it with them."

"Thank you," Harry said, taking the paperwork. He walked over to Rude and Reno. "So even though I've been a Turk for... a day, I get to carry around my own gun?"

"Turks are really picky with who we let in, yo," Reno explained. "If we didn't trust ya not ta shoot yourself, we wouldn't have picked ya in the first place."

Harry nodded and shrugged lightly. The three went to the weapons locker, Reno and Harry bickering away, and picked out a gun. Harry chose one that was lightweight and the same size as his wand, as that was what he was most comfortable with. After that they picked up a computer and a key card.

"This will let you travel the building," Rude explained. "You will not be allowed into restricted areas but you may use the elevator to go to all the floors."

Harry stared at the small piece of white plastic. He couldn't believe it. After all his time as a Soldier cadet he was simply handed a key card for the whole freaking building. He and Cloud could search wherever they wanted now and Cloud wouldn't have to get in trouble by stealing Zack's key card. Harry quickly reached out and snatched the card before anyone could change their mind and take it away.

Abruptly he asked, "What floor is the science department on?"

Rude quirked an eyebrow, the only outward sign that he was surprised by the question. "The science department is spread between floors sixty-seven and sixty-eight. I don't recommended trying to go up there."

"Why?"

"Because those creep-shots are fucking wacko, yo!" Reno exclaimed. "Some of the shit they get up to..." he shivered and made a face.

"You know?" Harry asked eagerly.

"It's a Turks job to know everything," Reno said. "Knowledge is power, yo."

Harry nodded and looked down at his new laptop and key card. In just one day he had gotten further in his mission to find Hermione than he had in his entire six months with Soldier. Becoming a Turk was definitely the right decision.

* * *

><p>When Cloud returned from his classes he found Harry sitting on his bed. His shoes were thrown on the floor and a black suit was hanging on the wall. Cloud shut the door behind him and removed his worn uniform.<p>

"You know, everyone thinks you were kidnapped by the Turks," Cloud said by way of greeting.

Harry smiled briefly, finding that amusing. He was poking at the keys on his computer, frowning at the screen. Cloud sat next to him.

"What's this?"

"So I get my own computer and gun for being a Turk," Harry explained. Cloud sat up in surprise. "And I've been messing around with the computer for a while now. Reno said computer skills are really important to a Turk, which sucks because I've barely touched these things. Rude put a typing program on the here and I'm supposed to learn how to type flawlessly by the end of the week."

"That's pretty demanding."

"Yeah, the Turks are just as demanding as Soldier but in different ways." Harry pressed enter and made a happy noise at the confirming beep. He smiled at Cloud. "I just fixed it so we can still share a room."

"How?"

"Well when I messing around with the computer I noticed something really weird." Harry held up his wand. "Watch." He moved the wand towards the screen and the picture became zig-zaged and turned blurry. He moved it away and the screen returned to normal.

"Your wand disrupts computers?"

"Yeah and it's really helpful," Harry said happily. "It lets me get past security. Watch. This page is restricted and only meant for instructors. See? If you try and look at any files it asks for a password. But if I hold my wand up..." Harry held his wand to the computer and the screen faded out. He pressed enter and the computer made a sound of complaint. When Harry moved his wand away, the password box was gone and they had access to the files.

"How?" Cloud asked, amazed.

"I don't know. My wand disrupts the computer enough so that it... forgets it wants a password and just opens the file or something. I don't get how it works but it's pretty wicked."

"What can you get into?" Cloud asked eagerly.

"I haven't tried a whole lot yet," Harry explained. "I wanted to test it out so I went into the system and changed our room assignments so we're still together. I figured that it was something small and if anyone was going to bust me, it wouldn't be a big deal."

Cloud nodded. "The security is probably basic so no one would really throw a fit about you hacking the room assignments."

"That's not all," Harry said, his voice getting excited. He pulled out a key card and handed it to Cloud. "I got this today. It gives me access to all the floors."

Cloud's eyes widened. "_All_ of them?"

"Yeah, I just can't get into restricted areas. And I found out the science department is on floor sixty-seven and eight."

Cloud couldn't help but gawk at his brother. Harry giggled and nudged him.

"Yeah, I was shocked too. So I thought we could use the computer to research Hojo and find out exactly where and what he's working on. Once we know that, we can use my key card and go find Hermione."

"Then let's do it," Cloud gestured at the laptop. "How do you search on this thing?"

The brothers huddled over the computer, staring at the screen intensely.

* * *

><p>Sephiroth sat straight in his chair as he barely restrained from rubbing his tired eyes. He had just gotten back from a particularly long and tiresome "mission" to Junon. His mission had been to stand next to the president while the fat man spat out Shinra propaganda. He had been roped into signing autographs and participating in mock fights for the people's entertainment. Over all it had been a tortures event that had tested his patience.<p>

Now, back at Shinra, a weeks worth of paperwork had piled up in his absence. Sephiroth had asked why his other generals hadn't kept up with the annoying mound and Genesis had laughed and quoted the ridiculous play he loved so very much before saying something about having other matters to attend to. Angeal had been easier to guilt and apologized for not being more diligent before taking half the papers and getting to work on them. Sephiroth considered making Zack do some of the work too but decided against it. Zack wasn't known for attention to detail and Sephiroth didn't feel like going back and checking over his work.

As Sephiroth tiredly reached for the next set of papers, his computer beeped and a screen popped up. Curious, he turned and looked at the message. It stated someone was attempting to hack into classified material. A moment later the message disappeared and a new message flashed that the someone had succeed. Frowning, Sephiroth opened a program that allowed him to track potential threats to the system. The person was attempting to read files on... Professor Hojo? That was a new one. Very few people outside of the company knew who the man was and even fewer tried to get information on him.

Sephiroth punched his code into the computer and his program revealed the computer being used for the hacking was in the building, connected to Shinra's own system. Confused, Sephiroth noticed that the person had managed to bypass at least three levels of security so far. The person wasn't using passwords or any sort of virus. They were somehow bypassing the need for passwords and gaining access to classified files without one. How could someone be skilled enough to bypass security but dumb enough to use one of Shinra's own computers? Sephiroth activated the tracer and waited, but before the program could pinpoint the exact location of the hacker, the connection was lost.

Frowning, Sephiroth picked up the phone and pressed a button that would automatically dial Tseng. It was only a moment before the leader of the Turks answered.

"Yes?"

"Tseng, I just had a computer breach," Sephiroth explained without preamble. "Someone managed to hack into files concerning Hojo."

"Was anything stolen?"

"I am uncertain. The method used was very strange."

Sephiroth could hear typing on the line and waited patiently. "I don't see anything out of place," Tseng finally said. "I will look into this matter and get back to you."

"Thank you."

Sephiroth hung up the phone and linked his fingers, staring at his computer. That had been the strangest hacking attempt he had ever witnessed. He would be very interested in what Tseng had to say when he was finished investigating.

Over forty floors down, Harry slammed his laptop shut and shoved it away from him. Cloud was staring at the thing horrified. They hadn't found anything on Hojo other than he was in charge of the entire science department and had so many projects going on it would take forever to wade through them all. What had scared the two boys was that Harry's computer had alerted them to a tracking software that was being used to locate their computer. Harry had quickly shut the laptop and was now panicking about what to do.

"Can they still trace it if it's off?" Cloud demanded.

"I don't know!" Harry exclaimed. "I didn't know they could trace it at all!"

"What do we do?"

Harry reached out and grabbed Cloud's thick training boot. He threw the computer onto the floor and then used the boot to smash it. The computer smoked for a moment before dying. Harry hit it a couple more times, just to be sure.

"Well, they can't trace it if it's destroyed," Cloud shrugged.

Harry groaned. "Reno's going to kill me."

Cloud nodded and placed a sympathetic hand on his brother's shoulder.

* * *

><p>Reno did, indeed, try and kill Harry when the teen showed him the remains of his laptop. Luckily, Rude was there at the time and stopped the redhead from getting violent. As punishment for breaking his laptop and providing some lame excuse that his brother stepped on it, Harry's pay was docked. Harry, who hadn't even known he got paid, was okay with that. He was issued another laptop and warned if this one got broke, the consequences would be <em>very<em> severe.

A week later Cloud was waiting for his sword training class to start. The instructor was late, something the cadets had never seen before. As they all waited in the room with their dull swords, the boys entertained themselves with possible reasons for the instructor's tardiness.

"Maybe class is canceled and they forgot to tell us."

"Maybe Instructor Marvin got ate by a monster."

"There aren't any monsters in the Shinra building."

"A guy can hope, you know."

"Yeah man, don't kill our dreams!"

Cloud smiled as the rest of the boys laughed. The door to the training room opened and everyone quickly stood to attention. Instructor Marvin glared at them all until his eyes fell on Cloud.

"Strife. Get out."

Cloud blinked in surprise. "Me? But um..."

"Don't stand there gawking like a buffoon! I said get out!"

Cloud dropped his sword before hurrying from the room, extremely confused. He shut the door behind him and wondered what could possibly have happened to get him kicked out of class. The answer came pretty quick as Zack appeared in front of him, smiling widely.

"Hey Spiky!"

"Za-Zack! What are you doing here? Are you the reason I just got kicked out?"

"Sure am!" Zack smiled, flinging his arm around Cloud. He started them walking down the hall. "I had so much fun teaching ya the other day I've decided to take you under my wing."

"What?"

"I'm going to mentor you. They let First Class operatives do that, so long as it doesn't interfere with our regular duties. I won't be able work with you everyday, but I can most of the time. Because of that, you don't have to take Marvin's course anymore. But don't get all excited about having one less class because I'm going work you harder than that guy ever did!"

Cloud smiled. "Sounds good to me!"

Zack wrapped an arm around his friend. "That's the spirit!"

They went up to the Soldier floor and used the training area up there. Working with Zack was like a dream for Cloud. The First was an excellent teacher, praising Cloud constantly to keep his confidence up but also never hesitating to correct him or point out what he was doing wrong. Zack loved how Cloud was such an eager and serious student. He was always focused and never once complained about the hard pace Zack set. After a couple hours of training, Zack called for a break.

"You wanna get some dinner?" he asked. "It's pretty late."

Cloud's stomach rumbled loudly at the mention of food and the blonde blushed while Zack laughed. Zack led them to the small cafeteria that was meant for Soldiers only. Cloud's eyes widened as he saw the sheer amount of food. There was more in this small room than he had seen in his life. Soldiers were sitting around tables with plates heaping and most were going back for seconds.

Zack laughed at Cloud's face. "Mako makes us burn a lot more calories than normal," he explained. "So we eat a lot. Don't tell anyone, but it's actually a big weakness for Soldiers."

Cloud blinked. "Weakness?"

"Yeah, we burn calories so fast that we have to eat more often and a lot more food than normal people. It kinda makes long missions a pain in the ass sometimes."

Zack grabbed a tray for each of them and they began piling food onto their plates. Cloud felt guilty for a second that he got to eat such wonderful, high quality food and Harry was stuck downstairs in the cadet cafeteria. Then he remembered how many times Reno had taken his brother out to eat the past week and didn't feel so bad.

The two sat at table, away from the other Soldiers. Zack began eating with such enthusiasm Cloud was worried his friend would eat his fork by accident while shoveling food into his mouth. The blonde ate his own dinner much slower, wanting to savor the delicious meal.

When the two were finally finished, Cloud stretched his arms, flexing his fingers. He was full and happy and felt good after his workout with Zack.

"So how's your brother doing?" Zack asked. He really wasn't all that interested in the other boy but felt it would be polite to inquire. "Likin' the Turks?"

"He seems too," Cloud shrugged. "I mean, he's always complaining about Reno and what an ass he is but it's not like real complaining, you know? Like he's whining but still enjoying himself."

"Yeah I get that. I'll whine about my job but I still love it."

"What do you do?" Cloud asked curiously. "You're a Lieutenant General, right? So you answer to General Sephiroth?"

"Yup, him and Angeal Hewley, I've mentioned him before, he's my mentor, and Genesis Rhapsodos. They're in charge of Soldier, with Sephiroth having the final say, and I answer to them. As for what I do, it varies. Usually when I'm here at Shinra I kinda act as a buffer for them."

"A buffer?"

"Yeah like, if there's a problem with the Soldiers, they come to me first, whether it's personal or professional. I handle everything unless it's something real big then I take it to the other three. That way they're free to do their jobs without having to worry about moral or people's issues." Zack played with his fork. "But when I'm not at Shinra, I'm usually in charge of missions. Mostly I go solo, since I'm strong enough to not need help or back up, but if they send me out with others I'm in charge."

"You go on missions with Turks, don't you?"

Zack nodded. "Sure do. Though Turks don't usually stick around. Most of the time they have their orders and I have mine, and we meet up after we've carried out our missions. See Cloud, a Soldier is a fighter. When we get sent somewhere it's too fight. When the Turks get sent somewhere it's to gather information. So a lot of the times a Soldier acts as a distraction by fighting so Turks can sneak around and do what they need to."

"How often do Turks fight?"

Zack shrugged. "They're trained to avoid confrontation if they can. But when they do fight it's usually pretty impressive. Reno is a fucking good shot with a gun. He's got nothing on Soldier of course, but he has some talent."

Cloud nodded and digested what Zack had told him. He rather liked the idea that Turks avoided fights when possible. That was something he always hoped Harry would learn. His brother had a temper and didn't always know when to back down or run away. Though in all fairness, Cloud didn't always know when to run either. He'd lost track of the number of times he and Harry had run head first into danger, whether it was while they were out hunting or fighting off the bully kids in town.

"I can't wait until I make Soldier," Cloud admitted quietly. "It's been my dream since I was little. All I ever wanted to do was become a Solider so I could protect my family."

Zack smiled softly. "My dream is to become a hero," he admitted quietly. "I grew up with stories of great heroes who were loved by all and always saved the day. That's what I want to be."

"Well I think you've managed it."

Zack laughed and reached over, ruffling Cloud's spikes. "Not quiet yet, Spiky. But you can bet I will be. And I'll bet on you becoming a Solider. Stick with me and I'll make sure you're in top shape come exam time."

Cloud beamed before ducking his head shyly. He was very happy, but also very humbled by Zack's faith in him. He swore to himself that he would work hard and not let Zack or anyone else down.

Their moment was interrupted when a Second Class Soldier walked up to their table, carrying a large package.

"Hey Kunsel!" Zack greeted. "What you got there?"

"Commander Tseng told me to bring it to you."

They shoved their plates out of the way and set the box on the table. "Oh!" Zack eagerly ripped the wrapping off. "Yeah, he got it!"

A high quality boy and arrows sat in the box. Cloud stared at it appreciatively. It was much more sophisticated than the wooden one he had home. This bow was black and made of a light plastic. It had a targeting scope and Cloud assumed it had a lot of power behind it. Zack pulled it from the box, looking it over curiously.

"I've never seen one of these in real life before," he admitted.

"This is a good one," Cloud said. "Mine was a basic wooden longbow."

The other Soldiers in the cafeteria started to come over, curious as to what Zack was looking at. The bow was passed around and a couple guys pulled back on the string.

"These things went out of style years ago," a Second Class, Tristan, said. "My dad owns a weapons shop and had some on the wall for display."

"What'd you get it for, Zack?" Matt, a Third Class, asked.

"Well my buddy Cloud here challenged me," Zack grinned, taking the bow back.

Cloud flushed when everyone stared at him. "I didn't challenge you..." he muttered.

"Awe, don't be shy, Spiky! You said you were a better shot than me with one of these things!"

The Soldiers laughed and Cloud blushed. Zack grabbed the bow and slung his arm around Cloud's shoulder. "Well let's go down to the shooting range and try this antique out!"

The other Soldiers quickly agreed and took care of their food trays. Zack led a suddenly panicked Cloud to the elevator. When Cloud had "challenged" Zack to a shooting contest, he had really been half joking. He knew he couldn't beat a Mako enhanced First Class Solider. Zack was just so easy to get along with that Cloud had issued his challenge without thinking. Now he was being led to the shooting grounds, surrounded by a group of seven or so Soldiers, to make an ass outta himself as he attempted to beat Zack in a shoot off.

The large group arrived at the grounds which were thankfully empty. The Soldiers stepped back and eagerly waited while Zack fiddled around with the bow. Cloud watched him for a moment and realized Zack had no idea how to string it.

"What's taking so long, Zack?" Kunsel called from the waiting group. "I thought you knew what you were doing?"

"I thought all you had to do was pull the string and shoot!" Zack whined. "Spiky! How do you get this thing to work?"

Cloud barely managed to not laugh. Maybe he wouldn't make a complete fool out of himself after all, if Zack couldn't even figure out how to shoot. He stepped forward and took the bow, stringing it easily. He plucked the string to make sure it was taught enough before grabbing an arrow and loading it.

"Here." Cloud attempted to give it back to Zack but the First just waved him off.

"Show us how it's done."

Nervous, and acutely aware that everyone's eyes were on him, Cloud drew the string back. He aimed at target that was fifty feet away and held for a second before releasing. The bow snapped his wrist painfully at the shot went wide. The group of Soldiers burst out laughing and Cloud turned a nice cheery red, mortified.

"Hey, you okay?" Zack asked hurriedly, looking at his wrist.

"I'm fine," Cloud snapped. He didn't mean to be rude but he was embarrassed. "This scope threw off my shot. I've never shot a bow with one on it before and didn't know you had to adjust for it."

"Calm down," Zack soothed. "We're out here having fun. Can you take it off?"

Cloud looked at it and saw where the scope detached. He set it aside and restrung the bow.

"What about your wrist?" Zack interrupted quickly.

"It should be fine without the scope messing up my shot."

Eager to redeem himself and stop the laughter behind him, Cloud retook his position and aimed. After a moment he released the string and this time the arrow sang through the air perfectly straight. It hit the target just left of the center and the Soldiers cheered.

"Nice!" Zack whooped. "Alright, alright! Show me!"

Happy, Cloud gave the bow to Zack and instructed him how to stand. He pushed Zack's feet apart slightly and helped him draw the bow. When he was confident Zack looked to be standing correctly and had good aim, he stepped back and told Zack to let go when he felt comfortable. Zack released the arrow immediately and then yelped as the string snapped his wrist. The arrow plunged into the dirt and the Soldiers laughed.

"That smarts!" Zack exclaimed.

"When you let go of the string, just let go," Cloud explained. "Don't try and push the arrow through, just open your fingers and let the bow do the rest."

"Oh man, what has Soldier come to?" Tristan called, his voice teasing. "Our best guy being taught by a cadet!"

"If the Turks hear about this we'll never live it down!" Kunsel yelled. The Soldiers roared with laughter again and Zack whined at them. "Don't worry guys, we've still got our Generals! We can still be redeemed!"

Zack scowled at his friends as they chuckled at his expense. Cloud was torn between wanting to laugh to but not wanting to hurt his friend's feelings. Zack noticed his confused face and winked, smiling widely.

"We're just having fun, Cloud," he assured.

Cloud smiled in relief, allowing himself to relax. Zack drew the bow again and this time shot the arrow perfectly. Everyone cheered, but it was over the top and slightly mocking. Zack just rolled his eyes at them and playfully stuck out his tongue.

The fun was interrupted by a loud rumble and the Soldiers looked around in confusion. They heard it again and everyone's eyes turned skyward.

"Is that thunder?"

"Yeah it looks like rain," Zack commented, squinting his eyes to look over the training grounds. The rain was starting to fall slowly, little drops landing all around them.

"It never rains in Midgar," Kunsel commented. "I've only seen it happen a couple times before."

"It rained all the time in Nibelheim," Cloud said. "We were at the base of the Nible Mountains."

"Gongaga got some pretty wicked rainstorms too," Zack added. "Well, guess we'll have to have our contest later. Everyone report back to the Soldier floor and get ready. I want a good stock of potions and cure materia available. Be ready to move on a moments notice!"

The men nodded and lightly jogged back to the elevator just as Zack's phone rang. He stepped away to answer it and Cloud looked at Kunsel in confusion.

"I thought it was just rain."

"It rains so infrequently in Midgar that people tend to go nuts when it does. There's a lot of accidents and everyone always gets sick afterward because they go out and play in it."

"But it's just rain!"

"For you maybe, but for people who only see rain once or twice a year it's a big deal. Shinra usually sends Soldiers out into the city to help with any accidents and keep things running smoothly."

Zack joined the two, hanging up his phone. "That was Sephiroth. He says Angeal is assigning sectors to everyone upstairs. We've all got a sector to monitor and help." Kunsel nodded and Zack turned to Cloud with a smile. "We'll see ya later, Spiky. Duty calls."

"Be careful."

Kunsel and Zack laughed. "Don't worry, aside from getting wet we'll be fine. Bye Cloud!" The two ran off to the elevators and Cloud took the time to retrieve the arrows from the targets. Rain began to fall harder and he shook his blonde hair, looking up. He could barely make out lightening flashing in the sky before he heard thunder.

Gathering up the bow and arrows, Cloud made his way back inside, suddenly feeling very homesick.

* * *

><p>Reno was fuming. He was currently stomping around the halls with a scowl etched onto his face. He glared hatefully at anyone who happened to cross his path, feeling slightly better when they scurried away in fear. Being a Turk commanded a lot of respect but it also meant people feared what he could do to them. The rumors of the Turks exploits had become so outlandish and exaggerated over the years that the mere mention of the group had people pissing themselves in terror. Reno loved that about his job.<p>

Though right now Reno's intent was not to scare the populace. He was currently on a mission to find his stupid, worthless, annoying, little apprentice Turk. With the sudden rain the city was experiencing all personal were to report to their offices and await instructions. Usually the Soldiers took care of everything but the Turks were expected to be ready to be deployed in case there was an emergency. Reno had appeared in his office like he was supposed to only to be sent out by Rude with orders to find Harry.

Apparently the damn hillbilly didn't have a PHS. Who the fuck didn't have a PHS in this day and age?

Reno stopped in his angry walking as he spotted Cloud leaving the training area, carrying some strange weapon. Reno was pretty sure it was called a "bow" but had never really seen one up close before. He didn't care and stomped over to Cloud, calling out to him. The blonde looked up in surprise.

"Where's your stupid brother, yo?" Reno demanded.

Cloud blinked before turning on his heel and walking away.

"Hey! I asked you a question!"

Cloud casually flicked him off and kept walking, pissing Reno off to no end. He made a fist and briefly considered punching the blonde in the head. He restrained himself though. Zack had made it clear he liked the little blonde and Reno didn't want to deal with an angry First Class Soldier if he didn't have to. Instead, the redhead jogged to catch up to Cloud and forced himself to speak nicer.

"Look, the Turks are supposed to be gathered in the office right now and he needs to be there, yo. The freaking idiot doesn't have a PHS so I've gotta waste my time looking for him. Do you know where he is?" Reno was pretty proud of how not-rude that was.

"..." Cloud glanced at a clock on the wall. "Curfew is in a few minutes, he's probably in our rooms."

"I don't know where... wait did you say your rooms? I thought he got moved out."

Cloud shrugged. "We didn't like that idea and convinced them to let us room together."

"How'd you manage that, yo?" Reno shook his head. "Never mind, I'll figure it out later. You guys are in the Soldier barracks, right?"

Reno left without another word, moving quickly. Cloud watched him go before turning to stare at a painting on the wall. He squinted and tilted his head before smiling.

"What are you doing?"

Harry seemed to melt out of the wall as he stepped forward and removed his charm. He was grinning, proud that Cloud had spotted him. They had practiced perfecting the disillusionment charm while they were growing up. It had been a favorite game of the three siblings. Harry would cast the charm and then Cloud and Hermione would try and find him. It was their private version of hide and seek.

"I didn't want Reno to find me," Harry explained. "Everyone's being sent into the city."

"Yeah I know," Cloud answered. "It's because of the rain. Zack said Midgar gets so little rain people freak out when it happens."

Harry frowned. "That's bizarre... but whatever, I thought we could use this time to explore." He pulled out his key card. "We know where the science department is."

"You don't want to try and get information from the computer?"

"Hacking the computer is going to be hard and we're going to have to think it through if someone can track us so easily. I'd figured we could search the science department and make up some excuse about being lost, since we're cadets, if we get caught."

"Now's the perfect time for it, since all the Soldiers are out in the city and the Turks are supposed to be in their offices," Cloud agreed. He quickly restrung the bow and looped it over his head, throwing the arrows over his shoulder. Harry eyed the weapon curiously.

"Where'd you get that?"

"It's Zack's, I'll explain later. Let's hurry before someone sees us."

The brothers hurried to the elevator and jumped in. Harry slid his key card and then pressed the button for floor sixty-seven. While the elevator traveled upwards Harry turned to Cloud and tapped him on the head with his wand. Cloud shivered as the spell traveled through his body. Harry then disillusioned himself and they each stood to the side of the door. When it opened, neither boy moved. No one was near the doors to get on so the two slipped into the hallway.

The first thing they saw were boxes. There were crates thrown against the wall and stairs leading to a walkway that wrapped around the entire room. Cautiously, Harry and Cloud moved into the room. The lights were dimmed and a large glass container was glowing on the left side of the room. Blood splattered the otherwise clear glass and the boys stared at it with wide eyes. They quickly turned away and a pinkish light caught their eye.

A huge iron container filled up the right side of the room. Cloud cautiously stepped forward and peered into the window, his eyes widening. A headless body floated in some sort of liquid, hooked up to wires and machines. Harry stood on his toes and peered inside, jerking away when he saw it. He looked up and read the name over the door.

"Jenova..."

"I think it's looking at me."

"How can it look at you? It doesn't have a head!"

Harry grabbed Cloud's shirt and pulled him down. "Come on, let's find Hermione."

Shakily, Cloud turned his back on the creature, feeling a shiver run down his spine. He was inexplicably terrified of the headless woman. All of his instincts screamed at him not to turn his back on the thing and Cloud kept glancing over his shoulder as they walked. The two rounded the corner and heard voices ahead of them. Harry grabbed Cloud and they hid behind some boxes just as two people dressed in white lab coats exited a room. They spoke quietly as they walked past, never seeing the two boys.

Once they were gone, Harry slowly walked over to the door they had existed. He slid his key card but the door didn't open. "It must be restricted," he whispered.

"Let's keep moving," Cloud suggested.

They continued walking until the hallway split in two directions.

"Let's split up," Harry whispered. "You go left, I'll go straight. If you find anything come get me."

Cloud nodded and slipped down the hall. Harry continued straight and hugged the wall as close as he could. Eventually he rounded a corner and found another door. He tried his key card but was once again denied. Continuing on, Harry found the stairwell. The door opened for his key card but when he tried to go to the next floor up he was denied access. Frustrated, Harry kicked the door. As expected it didn't do any good and Harry quickly walked back the way he'd come. He found Cloud at the hallway where they'd split up.

"Anything?" he whispered.

"No, just empty prison cells," Cloud answered. "You?"

Harry shook his head. "I can't get to the next floor, it's restricted."

"If Hermione's not here, she must be up there. We'll have to get our hands on a key card that has unrestricted access."

"Zack's?"

Cloud nodded slowly. "I think so. I mean, he's a First Class Lieutenant General, he's gotta be allowed everywhere, right?"

Harry shrugged. "Well there's nothing here and we can't get into any of the rooms. Let's get out of here before we get caught."

Reluctantly, Cloud nodded and the two made their way back to the elevator. They stopped when they heard voices and once again took refuge behind the boxes. The two scientists from earlier were standing in front of the glass container. The floor had dropped down and was now slowly moving upwards. A small red cat was crouched on the floor, it's fangs barred and growling loudly.

"Specimen Red XIII," the male scientist called. "The Professor has scheduled it to receive another injection."

"Well I'm not giving it to him!" the female scientist exclaimed. "They haven't even cleaned up the blood from the last person to try and inject it!"

"Relax, we'll knock it out first."

The man hit a button and green gas began to fill the chamber. The cat roared and flung itself against the glass. The scientists jumped back but the container held without a problem. After a moment the cat collapsed, it's breathing labored and eyes sliding closed. The scientist shut the gas off and stepped forward, pulling a needle from his coat. He opened the container and stepped inside, quickly jabbing the needle into the cat's leg. Without warning the cat's eyes snapped open and it roared in pain. It leapt to it's feet and pinned the scientist to the ground easily.

"Aaron!" the woman screamed.

Aaron never got the chance to answer as the cat used it's huge jaws to rip the man's throat out. The woman screamed again and barely managed to shut the door before Red XIII lunged for it. The cat hit the wall and roared again. The female scientist ran from the room, tears flowing down her face.

Harry and Cloud huddled together, shaking and fighting back vomit at what they had just witnessed. It wasn't long though before Harry forced himself to stand up. He grabbed Cloud's arm.

"Come on," he whispered urgently. "That woman will call for help and we need to go before it gets here!"

Cloud nodded, standing on shaky legs. He stopped and look at his hands, making sure Harry's charm hadn't worn off yet. Satisfied they were both still well covered, Cloud led the way past the container and the cat, that was now sitting off to the side, as far away from the scientist's body as it could get. They were halfway through the room when the cat looked up, it's ears twitched and nose sniffing the air. It jumped to its feet and, to the boys' horror, stared straight at them.

"Wizard!"

It took Harry and Cloud a moment to realize the cat had spoken. It's lips moved and a very human sounding voice left its mouth.

"Wizard, I know you are there! My eyes see through your spell and I can smell your magic."

Cloud grabbed Harry's arm but the boy didn't move. He took a cautious step forward but Cloud tightened his grip.

"You can... talk?"

"Yes Wizard. Please, I beg you, free me."

"Free you?" Harry nearly yelled. Cloud shushed him and looked around worriedly. "You just killed that man!"

"He has tortured me!" The cat roared and Harry and Cloud panicked. "They took me from my home months ago and have locked me in this cage, experimenting on my body and showing no signs of remorse!"

"Quite!" Cloud hissed. "Someone will hear you! Harry, we've got to go!"

Harry stared at the cat-creature who lowered his head and looked him in the eye. "Please Wizard, do not leave me here. Please help me."

Cloud yanked Harry's arm and dragged his brother to the elevator just as voices echoed from the far side of the room. They hurried into the elevator and Harry stared at Red XIII with wide eyes. The creature was watching them, his blue eyes filled with sadness.

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered as the door closed. He and Cloud collapsed onto the floor, breathing as hard as if they had just finished a ten mile run. Both were shaking, scared and upset by what they had just witnessed.

"What was that?" Cloud whispered. "A talking cat? What does the science department do?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't know... but I think it's a lot worse than we thought."

Cloud nodded in agreement.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So there's been very little crossover in this crossover. It's mainly been Harry thrown into the FF7 world. This chapter kinda started to hint at how I shall mix the two worlds. I've never written Red and have read few stories with him in it, so hopefully I'll do his character justice.**

**Well let me know what you think! Reviews get the ideas flowing!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Kinda a filler chapter but cool for the Zack/Cloud shippers.**

**Chapter Five**

For the next week, every time Cloud closed his eyes, images of the headless woman and the scientist being killed flashed behind his eyes lids. Harry couldn't stop thinking about the cat's sad eyes and his desperate plea for freedom. Both boys were determined now more than ever to find Hermione and save her from whatever horrors the scientists were putting her through.

Harry devoted himself to learning how to use a computer competently. He wanted to find out more about Red XIII and any other experiments Hojo was conducting. He practiced his typing everyday until he could type without looking down at his hands. The only time Harry wasn't on his computer was when Reno was teaching him hand to hand combat or he was doing some sort of small job for the Turks.

Currently, Harry was lying on his back, breathing hard and hurting all over. Reno had just knocked him flat on his ass for the hundredth time. They were in a private training room for Turks that was covered in cement. Reno explained Turks didn't train on padded floors because in a real fight, you didn't have something soft and cushiony to land on. You landed on hard, unforgiving rock and needed to get used to that.

"Wanna take a break, yo?" Reno asked.

Harry forced his tired body up. "No." He stood at the ready and met Reno's eyes with a determined face. Reno just shrugged and Harry ran forward, aiming for his face. He fainted to the side and attempted to kick Reno in the stomach but the redhead easily blocked him. Harry went down to one knee and swept his leg out but Reno jumped over the limb and slammed a fist into Harry's head as he landed. Harry saw stars for a moment and lay down. He understood why Reno didn't pull his punches when they were training but sometimes Harry really wished he would.

Reno knelt down and shook his head, staring at Harry. He felt a tiny twinge of guilt for beating the kid up so badly but not enough to take it easy on him. Turks had a rough life and Harry needed to be tough to survive it.

"You still with me, kid?"

Harry blinked and adjusted his glasses. "Barely."

"You need to get rid of these, yo," Reno commented. "They're too troublesome. If they get broke you'll be blind and at a huge disadvantage."

"How am I supposed to get rid of them?" Harry muttered, sitting up slowly. His glasses had been smashed many, many times before by the bullies of his hometown. Harry knew a spell to repair them though so it had never been a big issue. "Contacts don't work for me."

"Shinra's got doctors that can do some weird surgery to fix eyesight. Sounds pretty mad scientist to me but I've met people that swear by it."

Harry scowled. "I'm not letting any Shinra doctor near me," he said vehemently. "They'll probably rip my eyes out and replace them with some weird experiment and then spend months studying me."

"What the hell you talkin' about, yo?" Reno asked, staring at the teen shrewdly.

Harry shook his head. "Nothing, I'm not talking about anything. Let's keep going." He stood on shaky legs and Reno rolled his eyes.

"We're done for the night." He pulled out a green ball and held it out to Harry. "You ever use materia before?"

Harry shook his head. He had seen the glowing balls of condensed Mako but didn't know how to use them. He took it in his hand, surprised by how cold it was. Everyone always described materia as being warm and soothing.

"Focus on the center," Reno instructed. "Reach out with your mind and use your will to make the materia do what ya want. This one is a cure materia so focus on making it heal you."

Harry stared at the green orb and did as Reno instructed. He frowned when he didn't feel anything and the orb just sat in his hand lifelessly.

"I don't get it. What's the trick?"

"There's no trick, just do what I told ya. Make it heal you."

Harry tried again but no matter how hard he focused or how many mental orders he issued, the green ball refused to activate. Harry shook his head in frustration and Reno took the orb back. He held it out and cast a cure over Harry's form. Instantly, Harry felt his muscles loosen and his bruises fade. Reno tossed the orb back to him.

"Keep it and try and get it to work. Materia is a powerful weapon and you'll be at a pretty big disadvantage if you can't get it to work."

Harry nodded and pocketed the orb. "Thanks. Are you going to be in the office tomorrow?"

"Nah, Rude and I got a mission," Reno dismissed. "You need to be in the office to answer the phone and stuff like that."

"You want me to be your secretary while you get to go out on missions?"

"Yup!"

Harry scowled as Reno grinned. "Don't worry kid, I promise it'll be just as boring as it sounds."

* * *

><p>Cloud was so focused on his training that he didn't notice the bright blue eyes watching him. He swung his sword in a perfect arc, focusing on the muscles in his body. He wanted to be able to perform these moves in his sleep. The standard block and attack were important to have memorized because every advanced move started with them.<p>

After what he had witnessed in the science department, Cloud had become obsessed with getting stronger. The strange cat had killed the scientist with cold ease. Cloud wasn't interested in whether or not the cat's story about being kidnapped and tortured was true. All he cared about was getting stronger. If creatures like that were being held in the science department there was a strong chance Cloud would have to fight them in order to rescue Hermione.

Not to mention the cat had freaked Cloud out and not just because it had talked and killed someone. Never before had anyone seen through Harry's charm. The disillusionment charm was like very good camouflage. It allowed you to blend perfectly in with your surroundings but you could still be seen, especially if you were moving. But that cat had acted like the spell wasn't even there! He had seen them as easily as if they held up signs with lights announcing their presence. And it had called Harry a wizard. It knew what Harry was and where others like him were.

Cloud stumbled slightly, not paying attention to his feet as his mind wandered. With an angry yell, Cloud threw his practice sword down and ran a hand harshly through his spikes in frustration. That cat knew other people like Harry. Cloud knew, without a doubt, Harry was going to try and rescue it. Hermione would still be the top priority but Harry wasn't going to leave the creature behind if he could help it.

"What's got you all upset?"

Cloud jumped and looked up, surprised to see Zack standing in front of him, holding Cloud's sword. Cloud hadn't seen Zack for a couple of days as the First had been out on a mission. He had taken to practicing alone every night after classes but was glad to see his friend again.

"Welcome back," Cloud said quietly. "Did your mission go well?"

"Sure did," Zack grinned. "But what did you expect? I am after all, the best."

Zack walked over and handed Cloud his sword back. It was then Cloud noticed the large flat sword resting on the older teen's back. He peered at it and Zack smiled, turning around so Cloud could see the sword easier.

"My mentor is teaching me to wield it," Zack explained. "It's called the Buster Sword."

Cloud ran his fingers over it briefly. With a weapon like that, he could defeat anything. He would be able to protect his family with ease.

"Can I try it?"

Zack laughed and grabbed the thing off his back, using one hand to wield it. "I doubt you can do much more than lift it. This is a sword meant for Soldiers. Most people without Mako enhancements can't really use it."

Zack handed over the sword anyways and Cloud stumbled under the weight. It weighed at least a hundred pounds. He attempted to lift it but could only manage to get the tip off the ground. Cloud scowled as Zack took the sword back and placed it on his back. It was just a clear reminder that Cloud was not strong. He had so much to learn and so little time to do it.

"What's wrong, Spiky?" Zack asked.

Cloud didn't answer. He picked up his training sword and resumed his position. He swung the weapon twice before stopping.

"I need to get stronger," Cloud said.

Zack stared at him a moment before removing his Buster Sword. He set it against the wall and picked up a training sword from the rack. He walked over to Cloud and stood defensively.

"Attack me."

Cloud looked surprised but Zack's face was serious.

"Attack me. Remember everything I've taught you. Watch your feet and don't hesitate."

Cloud nodded and faced his friend. He took a deep breath before launching himself head first at the Soldier. Zack caught his attack easily but Cloud didn't let up. He twirled and planted his feet, stabbing forward. Zack dodged the attack but didn't return with one of his own. This fight was for Cloud to let off some frustration so Zack would stay on the defensive. Cloud didn't seem to care as he threw himself into the spar. He swung his sword in controlled movements, spinning and striking and jumping back. Zack watched him carefully, calling out advice quickly.

"Move your feet! You're leaving your left side open! Don't hesitate, thrust with all your strength!"

As the fight wore on, Cloud's swings became more clumsy. He's movement slowed but he forced himself to continue. He had to get stronger! His family needed him. Hermione needed rescuing and Harry needed protecting, even if his brother stubbornly refused it. He couldn't give up! Cloud had to be strong. He _would_ be strong!

With a yell, Cloud swung down at Zack's head in an arc. Zack lifted his sword and blocked it easily and Cloud fell to his knees, panting hard. Sweat dripped into his eyes and Cloud wiped it away angrily.

"That was _awesome!_"

Cloud blinked and looked up at Zack who grinning down at him. "I didn't even come close to hitting you."

Zack laughed. "Well yeah. Cloud, it's going to be a long time before you're able to hit me! I'm one of the best guys in Shinra! But what you did just now was really impressive. It's always hard to see how much you've improved, but trust me, you have. You're a lot stronger and faster than when we first started. You're doing really well."

Cloud sat back on his hands and shook his head. He couldn't bring himself to feel pride at Zack's words. He may be improving but that didn't mean he was strong. Cloud was still too weak to protect his family.

Zack sat next to Cloud and peered at his face. "What's wrong, Spiky?"

To Cloud's horror, he felt tears sting his eyes. He rubbed them away quickly, hoping Zack didn't notice.

"You know I'm here for you, right?" Zack went on. "I'm not just your teacher, I'm your friend. I'll help you with anything, you've just gotta talk to me."

Cloud sniffed and spoke quietly. If Zack didn't have such good ears he might not have heard the blonde. "My sister's in trouble and I'm not sure I can help her."

"I didn't know you had a sister. I thought you only had Harry."

"My mom adopted her too," Cloud explained. "When I was a kid, I was hunting up in the Nible Mountains and found them. Harry and my sister were nearly frozen in the snow. I carried them down to the town and got them help. The villagers found their parent's bodies further up the mountain, frozen to death." Cloud wiped his eyes. "My mom adopted them after they were better and we grew up together. I was so happy to have them around."

"So where's your sister now?"

Cloud shook his head. "I don't know. We've been trying to find her for months. I'm worried... I'm worried when we do find her, I won't be able to help her. I won't be able to protect her." Cloud clenched his fists, trying to ignore his angry tears. "Harry too. I want to be strong enough to protect him."

"You will be," Zack promised, resting a hand on Cloud's shoulder. "You're doing really well and picking up sword fighting pretty fast." Zack reached over and gently wiped a tear from Cloud's face, surprising the teen. He looked up and noticed how close Zack was to him. "Your family's lucky to have someone who cares so much about them. You're a good person, Cloud."

Cloud didn't answer as Zack moved in closer. He didn't pull away as Zack leaned in and pressed their lips together gently. Cloud's eyes fluttered closed as Zack's warm lips moved against his. Cloud was embarrassed to admit this was his first kiss so he wasn't sure what to do. Zack pulled away slowly and Cloud opened his eyes.

"Ah, sorry," Zack whispered. "I should have asked before doing that." He leaned away.

"Um... I've never..."

Zack blinked. "You're never been kissed?"

Cloud shook his head. "We were the village outcasts. No one came near us and here at Shinra, I guess romance isn't really the priority."

"Ah, now I feel _really_ bad for not asking!" Zack exclaimed. "You were just so cute and your eyes were so pretty and shiny because of the tears."

Cloud suddenly realized he'd been crying a moment ago and quickly rubbed his eyes, trying to dry them. Zack laughed and Cloud glared at him. The Soldier jumped to his feet and helped the blonde up.

"Okay, well we're going to kick up your training regimen! Now that you've told me that you need to get stronger to protect your family, I want to help even more! And when you do find your sister, you'll be strong enough to save her and if not, I'll be right there to help!"

"Help?"

"You betchya! I'm your friend and I'll always be there for you! Tomorrow's Sunday and your day off from classes, but not this time! I'll come get you in the morning and we'll start working out for real, go it?"

Cloud grinned. "Yes. Thank you, Zack!"

"No problem, Spiky! I'm here for ya, always."

* * *

><p>The next morning Cloud and Harry found themselves on floor sixteen, ordering cheap drinks from Tiffany. The girl was just as hyper and happy as Cloud remembered and, to his surprise, she remembered Cloud perfectly. She bounced around excitedly when Cloud introduced her to Harry and declared they were the cutest set of twins she'd ever seen. She refused to listen when they attempted to explain they weren't twins.<p>

After getting their drinks and sitting down, Harry reached into his pocket. "I've got a present for you."

He slid a bulky PHS towards Cloud on the table. Cloud picked it up and looked it over curiously. "Where'd you get this?"

"All Turks are expected to carry one," Harry explained. "Reno made me get one so he doesn't have to look for me anymore." Harry pulled out his phone and showed it to Cloud.

"Did Mamma send you money?" Cloud asked.

"Actually I get paid. I mean, I get paid next to nothing and getting these two phones pretty much takes up my whole check, but at least it's something."

Cloud's jaw dropped. "You get paid? Why don't I get paid?"

"Cuz Turks are cooler than Soldiers."

Cloud scoffed at that while Harry grinned. He picked up his phone and dialed a number. After a moment, Cloud's phone vibrated and a random jingle played. The screen lit up and Cloud stared at the name.

"Your older brother?" he read. "Really?"

Harry hung up and smiled. "Call me."

Cloud did so and Harry showed him the screen. It read "my little brother."

"Really?" Cloud exclaimed. "You know, we could be the same age for all you know! We don't actually know which one of us is older!" He crossed his arms. "And if anyone is older, it's me. I'm way more mature than you."

Harry rolled his eyes. "No you're not."

"Yes I am."

"Nu-uh."

"Yeah-huh!"

The two smiled for a moment before their faces fell and they stared at their hands. The argument about who was older was one that the boys had been having since they were children. Harry and Hermione remembered very little about their lives before Cloud and Mama Strife. The doctors said it was repressed trauma or something. As such they really didn't know things like their age or where they had come from. The playful argument was always stopped by Hermione, who insisted she was the oldest of the three and most mature and the brothers never tried to argue with her about it.

The two heard footsteps and Cloud looked up to see Zack running over happily. He stopped before the table with his hands on his hips and grinning widely.

"Hey guys! How you doing this morning?"

Harry grunted and Cloud smiled. "Fine. Zack, did you know Turk trainees get paid?"

"Yeah, sure did. Turks are really picky with their people so they don't have nearly as many recruits as Soldier. So they can afford to pay their guys."

Harry childishly stuck his tongue out at Cloud who scowled.

Zack laughed at the two. "Don't worry, when you make Soldier you'll get paid too. Pretty well, I might add."

Cloud nodded and held up his phone. "Hey, do you know how to change contacts on these?"

"You got a PHS? Awesome, let me give you my number." Zack snatched it and quickly programmed his name and number in. "This is a pretty old phone. Okay, who do you want me to change?"

"This one," Cloud pointed at Harry's info while the other boy whined at him to leave it alone. Cloud whispered to Zack, who snorted and changed the name. When he was done, he gave the phone back to Cloud. "Okay, call me!" Cloud ordered.

Harry did so and waited as the phone rang. Cloud and Zack laughed before Cloud showed Harry the screen.

"Pain the Ass," Harry read. "And you're supposed to be the mature one?"

Laughing, Cloud and Zack bid farewell to Harry and made their way upstairs to the Soldier training rooms. Zack looped an arm around Cloud's shoulder and they talked lightly as they walked. They performed their stretches and Zack did some squats. Once they were ready, Zack grabbed them two swords.

"Okay, so yesterday I noticed you leave you left side open a lot. So today I'm going to keep attacking you until you figure out how to block me."

"You're not going to tell me?" Cloud asked in surprise.

Zack smiled and shook his head. "Nope! Part of being in a fight is being able to adapt and change your style at a moment's notice. You need to be the one to figure it out. So get ready!"

True to his word, Zack attacked Cloud in all his unprotected areas. Cloud was constantly adjusting his stance but it seemed every time he compensated for one wrong thing, it caused another problem. They kept at it all morning. Every so often different Soldiers would come and go from the training room, pausing to watch the session. Cloud noticed whenever they came Zack would go easier on him. Cloud was touched by the gesture. Zack didn't want the blonde to be embarrassed so he was lax when others were watching.

Finally, Zack called for a stop and Cloud sat on the floor heavily. It was past noon and Cloud's stomach was rumbling loudly. Zack, as usual, was still bouncing around with endless energy.

"That was really good," he complimented. "You feel like you're getting the hang of it?"

Cloud nodded. "I think so."

"Good. So you wanna go into the city and get some food? My treat!"

"The city?" Cloud asked in surprise. "I haven't had a chance to go exploring there yet."

"Then we definitely need to go! Go change into some street clothes and meet me at the main entrance."

Cloud shrugged. "Okay."

A few minutes later, Cloud was waiting at the main entrance to Shinra, wearing a long sleeved blue shirt and some jeans. He wrapped a green scarf around his neck that his mother had made for his birthday. The city wasn't terribly cold but it was windy.

A few minutes later Zack appeared and waved at Cloud. The blonde was surprised to see Angeal Hewley with him. Both were dressed in dark jackets and a pair of jeans and Cloud hid his pout in his scarf. He had been hoping to spend the day alone with Zack. Not that he didn't want to meet the General, but Cloud had been hoping to talk to Zack about their kiss and it what it meant. He wouldn't be able to with Angeal around.

When the two walked up to him, Cloud saluted Angeal properly and the older man smiled. Zack immediately jumped up and down and shook his head.

"No, no! We're going out to lunch! This is completely unofficial and relaxing. There is to be no saluting, no calling anyone sir or cadet, and absolutely no formalities." He waved his finger between the two. "Got it? Good. Angeal, this is my buddy Cloud. Cloud this is my mentor, Angeal."

"It's nice to meet you, Cloud. Zack has spoken very fondly of you."

"It's nice to meet you too, sir."

"What did I just say?" Zack exclaimed.

Cloud glared lightly at him. "I called him sir because that's the polite way to address someone you just met. Or do you want me to be rude to someone you care about?"

Zack floundered for a moment before nodding. "All right I'll let it slide, this time."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Gee, thanks."

Zack's eyes were happy as he grabbed Cloud's arm and dragged the boy outside. Angeal followed, smiling in amusement at the pair.

"Well I know this great Wutanese restaurant in sector two. Have you ever had Wutanese, Cloud? I figured you didn't so I thought this would be a fun thing to try."

"Uh, sure..."

As they walked Zack talked constantly. He pointed out every little thing to Cloud and explained to Angeal that Cloud had never seen the city before. They had taken the train to the next sector over and even then Zack did not top talking. Cloud could tell other passengers were annoyed as they constantly shot him angry looks. If Zack noticed, he didn't care in the least.

Finally the three arrived at the restaurant and Zack ran off to us the restroom, giving Cloud a break. He rubbed his ears, which were still ringing with Zack's voice. Angeal saw the gesture the and laughed.

"I wish I could tell you that you get used to it."

"It's not that I don't like it when he talks but just..."

"When does he have time to breathe?"

"Yes!" Cloud exclaimed. He suddenly blushed as he realized who he was talking to. Zack may have wanted everyone to not be formal with each other but that didn't change the fact that this was Angeal Hewley. He was part of the legendary trio and in charge of Soldier.

Angeal didn't seem to mind the lack of formalities though as he smiled down at Cloud. "So how are you fairing in the Soldier program?"

Cloud shrugged and hid his face in his scarf. "I'm doing better now that Zack is helping me."

"Zack has always had the talent to be a good teacher, even if he himself is a tiresome student."

Zack had reappeared just in time to hear Angeal's words and jumped on the man's back, attempting to put him in a headlock. Angeal shook him off easily.

"What's the matter, old man? Can't keep up with someone half your age?"

"You are not half my age and I am certainly not old."

The three stepped up to the counter and Zack slapped some money down and declared they wanted three all-you-can-eat buffets. The dark skinned woman rang them up and told them to sit wherever the wanted. Zack grabbed Cloud's arm and dragged him around the large buffet, pointing at different foods and stating which were the best and which ones to avoid. Eventually the three sat down together with their meals (Angeal's and Zack's a good deal larger than Cloud's) and began eating.

"Next time, Cloud, I'll have Angeal cook for us! He's an amazing chef!"

Cloud looked at the man, surprised. The hardened warrior hardly seemed like the type to don an apron and spend time in the kitchen.

Zack noticed his face and laughed. "I know, totally not the type, but trust me, he's great!"

They kept talk light as they ate, Cloud going back for seconds while Angeal and Zack each went back for thirds. Once Cloud was finished he leaned back and sighed in content, taking out his new phone and looking through it. He'd never owned a PHS before. Nibelheim had phones in the houses but the town was too small to bother with cells. If someone wasn't at home, it usually only took a few minutes of wondering to find them in the small town.

Cloud sat up and held the PHS out to Zack. "How do I send my brother a message on this?"

Zack took the phone and instructed Cloud how to use it. He then programmed Angeal's number in, just in case of emergencies.

"Zack tells me your brother is a Turk," Angeal said.

Cloud nodded. "He didn't like Soldier, but he seems to be doing fine there. I just wish he didn't have to work with Reno so much." Cloud scowled at the thought of the redhead.

"I don't think I've heard of a Turk and Soldier being related," Angeal mused. "We don't usually allow siblings into the same departments or departments that work closely together."

"Why?"

"It's a distraction on the battlefield," Zack answered. "If you're in a fight, you're going to be worried about your family member and focus more on them than the mission."

Cloud nodded. He could believe that.

They finished up their lunch and left. The three walked to the train station and stopped. Zack smiled at Angeal.

"We're going to wander the city more. You heading back Shinra?"

"Yes, I have work to do. I might add that you also have work."

Zack just laughed and turned away slightly. "I'll get it done, don't worry."

"It is not honorable to leave your work unfinished. Remember that." Angeal turned to Cloud. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Cloud. I wish you luck in your training. If you ever need help, please don't hesitate to come see me."

"Oh, thank you, sir. It was nice to meet you too!"

Angeal nodded and climbed on the train just as the doors swished closed. Zack waved for a moment before turning to Cloud.

"Okay, so there's a friend of mine I haven't seen for awhile and she needs help building a cart so she can sell flowers."

Cloud nodded. "Okay."

"But she lives down in the Slums, so we've got be careful. No one's going to mess with us, because I'm a Soldier, but there are plenty of thieves down there. So put your phone and money in your front pockets because you're more likely to notice someone sticking their hand there, and stay close to me."

Zack lead the way down to the Slums confidently and Cloud marveled at how the scenery changed. They went from clean, well lit streets, to dirt, dark uneven roads. The further down they went, the more intense the smell became. It was like sewage and rotted meat and Cloud had to hide his face in his scarf. He noticed Zack rubbing his nose and trying to breathe his mouth and felt bad for his friend. The smell must have been a thousand times worse for his enhanced senses.

They made it to a place called Walmarket and Cloud looked around curiously. People were moving quickly, guarding their money and purchases jealously. No one looked at each other for long as they moved from place to place. There were beggars lining the road but the people didn't give them a second thought. When one homeless man held his hands out to Cloud, Zack grabbed the blonde and kept moving. Cloud glanced back to see the man scowling and flop back on the road, looking bored. Zack stopped outside a shop and turned to Cloud.

"I'm going to buy some supplies, wait here, okay? Don't talk to anyone or stare, it pisses them off. And keep a tight hold on your pockets!"

Cloud nodded as Zack disappeared into the shop. It wasn't long before the blonde grew bored. He didn't want to watch the people around them, for fear of making them angry. The Materia Shop caught his eye and Cloud decided to go window shopping. He could still see the entrance of the Item Shop so he wouldn't miss Zack when he came out.

The shop's windows were dingy and Cloud pressed his head against them to try and see better. Annoyed at how filthy the view was, Cloud checked to make sure Zack hadn't returned before hurrying into the shop. He would take a quick look around and then leave. The shop was very small, with a man reclining behind the counter, looking bored out of his mind. He barely glanced up when Cloud walked in.

"Welcome," he said automatically.

Cloud ignored the man and looked around. He recognized most of the materia from his classes. There were basic fire, blizzards, and thunders along with a cure materia. The cure materia was nearly triple the price of the others. A small purple globe caught his eye and Cloud reached out, plucking it off the shelf. Like all materia, it felt warm and comforting in his palm.

"That's a Lucky Plus Materia," the clerk spoke suddenly. "Increases your luck. Great if you're going gambling."

"I don't gamble."

The clerk shrugged uncaringly. "It's two hundred gil."

Cloud made a face and put it back on the shelf. "No thank you."

"Fine, for you I'll part with it for one hundred."

Cloud shook his head. "I've got fifty and that's it."

"Sold!" the man yelled. He grabbed the orb and shoved it into Cloud's hand, simultaneously reaching into the blonde's pocket and snatching his money. Cloud protested but the man vanished behind the counter and through a door labeled "private." Flabbergasted, Cloud had no choice but to leave with his new "purchase."

Zack was standing outside the Item Shop looking worried. He spotted Cloud and ran over. "There you are! Guess I should have known you'd wander into the Materia Shop."

"Uh yeah..." Cloud held up his Lucky materia. "I got something."

Zack took it with a frown. "Is this Lucky Plus? Oh man, Cloud, you didn't pay for this, did you? These things are a dime a dozen and kinda useless."

"Well he said it was two hundred—"

"What?! For this?"

"But I refused to pay it. So he said fifty and took my money before I could argue..."

Zack sighed and shook his head. "Give me this, I'll get your money back."

"No it's fine," Cloud assured quickly. He smiled lightly. "I took your advice and didn't put my money altogether. He really only took twenty-five gil from me."

"That's still kinda a rip off..."

Cloud shrugged and took his materia back. "Whatever. I'm going to keep it. Even if it's useless, it's still my first materia." He stuck the thing into his pocket and smiled up at Zack. "So you wanted to meet your friend next?"

* * *

><p>Cloud stared up at the run down church Zack had led him too. The Soldier was humming happily and had, at some point during their journey, taken Cloud's hand into his own. Cloud found the gesture to be comforting and would squeeze Zack's hand every so often, enjoying how it always made Zack smile like an idiot when he did.<p>

"So your friend lives here?"

"No, she just hangs out here all the time. This is the only place anywhere it the slums where flowers grow."

"Flowers?"

"Yeah, come check it out."

As Zack led the way inside and flash of red caught Cloud's eye. He turned but it was gone, leaving Cloud to wonder if he'd seen anything at all. Zack pushed the doors to the church open revealing a flower patch in the center of the broken down room. A girl was on her hands and knees in the dirt, humming as she tended the garden.

"Aerith!" Zack called, running forward. The brunette girl paused before turning around, a large smile on her face.

"Zack! I wasn't expecting you today."

She stood and accepted his hug with a gentle smile. Cloud stood back awkwardly.

"Sorry for not calling ahead. But I promised to build a cart for you, right? Well here I am! I got all the supplies, we just need to make it."

She clapped her hands together, bouncing up and down excitedly. "That's great! It's about time you kept your promise to me. Let's get started." It was then she noticed Cloud. Aerith looked at him in surprise before tilting her head slightly. She studied him for a long moment before grinning.

"Who's your friend, Zack?"

"Oh! Sorry! I forgot to introduce you two. Aerith, this is Cloud, Cloud this is my buddy Aerith."

Aerith held out her hand and Cloud shook it, jumping slightly when he felt a shock fly through their hands. Aerith felt it too and smiled widely.

"We're going to be good friends, Cloud, I can tell!"

"Yeah, I hope so."

Aerith smiled widely and changed their grip so she was holding his hand. "Well, come on then! Let's get building before Zack decides to vanish on me again and never keeps his promise."

Zack whined at the teasing but Aerith just playfully stuck her nose in the air, hiding a smile. The three made their way outside where Zack began unpacking his bag. Together, he and Cloud began building the cart with Aerith making demands from the sidelines. While they worked, Cloud's new materia fell from his pocket, rolling straight to Aerith.

The blonde stopped and set his hammer down, walking over to the girl, who was looking at his materia curiously.

"Sorry," he said and held his hand out. Aerith however, didn't hand over the materia.

"This is a Lucky Materia!" she giggled. "They don't work very well, you know."

Cloud flushed. "Yeah, Zack mentioned that." He held his hand out. "Can I have it back?"

"Why do you want something that doesn't work?"

Cloud frowned, annoyed. "Just because it doesn't work doesn't mean it's useless. It's my first materia so I'm going to take care of it."

His answer made Aerith smile widely. She clasped her hands around the materia and held them up to her chest, closing her eyes and bowing her head as if in prayer. A moment later she opened her eyes and handed the materia back to Cloud.

"There! It'll work better for you now, so long as you take good care of it."

Cloud took the item back and stared at it curiously.

"Hey! Why am I doing all the work on my own now?" Zack yelled. "What are you two doing over there?"

"We're coming," Aerith assured, linking her arm with Cloud. As she dragged them back to Zack, Cloud once again caught a flash of red, but it was gone when he turned to look. Shrugging it off, Cloud smiled at Zack's pouty face and sat down to help him finish Aerith's cart.

**A/N: So I wanted to introduce Aerith. Everyone spotted Reno watching her right? Even if Cloud didn't know it was him, we all did. I enjoyed writing the scenes of Cloud and Harry training harder and being more determined to succeed.**

**I feel like I'm forgetting to address something but I'm not sure what.**

**Please Read and Review! They inspire me!**


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